JD Vance launches new US-Israel command hub to oversee Gaza rebuilding and security efforts

KIRYAT GAT, ISRAEL: Vice President JD Vance announced the opening of a new joint command center in Israel on Tuesday, October 21, aimed at coordinating aid and rebuilding efforts in the Gaza Strip.

He described it as a cooperative step between the US and Israel to ensure long-term peace and stability in the region.

Vance says Israelis and Americans are teaming up to restore Gaza

Speaking alongside US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who helped broker the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, JD Vance said that the newly created Civilian-Military Cooperation Center would bring together Israeli and American teams to plan Gaza’s recovery and oversee security arrangements.

“You have Israelis and Americans working hand in hand to try to begin the plan to rebuild Gaza," he said.

"To implement a long-term peace, and to actually ensure that you have security forces on the ground in Gaza, not composed of Americans, who can keep the peace over the long term,” Vance added.

Vice president says his visit had 'nothing to do' with recent ceasefire violations

Vance’s trip came shortly after Israeli airstrikes on southern Gaza, which officials said followed a "blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement” by Hamas over the weekend.

The vice president, however, emphasized that his visit had been planned well before the flare-up.

“My visit had nothing to do with events in the past 48 hours,” Vance told reporters.

“We had actually tried to plan this visit, frankly, months ago. We thought this would be a good time to do it. ... I wanted to come, I wanted to check in on things, I wanted to talk to the troops who are working very hard to coordinate this massive relief effort,” he added.

Focus remains on recovering the remains of hostages

Vance also addressed questions about the ongoing efforts to recover the remains of hostages still in Gaza.

He acknowledged that the process would take time.

“It is a focus of everybody here to get those bodies back home to their families so they can have a proper burial,” he said. “Now, that said, this is difficult. This is not going to happen overnight.”

He noted that some hostages remain buried under rubble or in undisclosed locations.

“That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t work to get them,” he added. “It’s just a reason to counsel in favor of a little bit of patience.”

A 72-hour deadline for Hamas to release all captives ended last Monday, with all living hostages freed but several bodies still in Gaza.

Vance says no deadline on Hamas disarmament

When asked about a timeline for disarming Hamas, Vance declined to set one.

He said, “I’m not going to do what the president of the United States has thus far refused to do, which is to put an explicit deadline on it, because a lot of this stuff is difficult.”

He added that while the process would take time, Hamas faces severe consequences if it fails to comply.

“Unless Hamas disarms in accordance with the agreement, very bad things are going to happen,” Vance warned.

“And also the incentive is that if they disarm, there is a better future for everybody on the other side of it,” he added.