More on US-led ‘coordination centre’ in Israel
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) has released a statement offering more details on the work that will be carried out at the so-called Civil-Military Coordination Centre in southern Israel. Among other things, it says the centre will:
- “Support stabilization efforts” in Gaza.
- Facilitate the transfer of “humanitarian, logistical and security assistance” from international counterparts to the Palestinian enclave.
- Monitor ceasefire implementation, including via “an operations floor that allows staff to assess real-time developments in Gaza”.
CENTCOM reiterated that US military personnel will not deploy to Gaza, adding they will, however, “integrate representatives from partner nations, non-governmental organizations, international institutions, and the private sector as they arrive to the coordination center”.
‘Internal Israeli politics’ roiled by tough-talking Trump officials
We will hear a lot of positives on the US officials’ continued visit to Israel, which is expected. The messaging will continue to be the same: very flowery, very optimistic, promising the moon.
But really, the commentary in Israel is talking about very tough conversations. In fact, even before JD Vance arrived, Israeli media were talking about tough conversations that happened between Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff and the Israeli prime minister – telling him the American administration is not going to accept Israel unilaterally breaking the ceasefire.
There is serious concern that is where things are headed, given internal Israeli politics. It’s not just Netanyahu’s far-right coalition. We even heard in the past 48 hours from members of the opposition, saying Israel should go back to war on Gaza, and even think about a renewed ground invasion in response to an incident that still is unclear and resulted in the death of two soldiers.
The American administration has its own intelligence on that, and it’s not listening to all the bravado that is coming out of Israel about the need to resume war. They want to talk end-game. They keep saying the war is over. Israel officially has not declared that this war and the other fronts are over.
Israel announces schedule for VP Vance’s Netanyahu meetings
The Israeli government’s media office has released a schedule for Thursday, when US Vice President JD Vance is expected to hold meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
- 10am: Vance will be welcomed at the prime minister’s office in West Jerusalem, where they will meet privately. Photos will also be taken.
- 11am: Vance and Netanyahu will hold a larger working meeting after.
Israeli media are reporting that Netanyahu will face significant pressure from the America First vice president to end the war on Gaza as outlined in President Trump’s Middle East peace plan.
