By TheCradle | Source
The US plans to establish a large military base near the Gaza Strip to host international forces tasked with maintaining the ceasefire, Israeli outlet Shomrim reported on 9 November.
According to the report, the base will accommodate several thousand troops and cost an estimated $500 million.
A security official told the outlets the project marks a major shift for Israel, which has historically resisted foreign involvement in occupied territories.
The move underscores Washington’s intent to assume direct control over Gaza operations.
Michael Milshtein, a senior researcher at Tel Aviv University’s Dayan Center and former head of Palestinian affairs in Israeli military intelligence, said the US-led Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) in Kiryat Gat “will be responsible for most operations in Gaza, and Israel’s status as the central player in the strip is about to change.”
The planned facility is expected to serve as headquarters for the International Stabilization Force (ISF) for Gaza, part of the post-war framework outlined by US President Donald Trump.
The ISF would include troops from Egypt and Qatar and work alongside vetted Palestinian police units to secure borders and prevent weapons smuggling.
Shomrim reported that the US has already advanced talks with Israeli officials and is surveying sites along Gaza’s perimeter. Security sources quoted by the outlet said the establishment of the base “would indicate a strong role from Washington in post-war Gaza.”
The US, however, has repeatedly denied plans to deploy troops inside Gaza itself, insisting that any troops on the ground would only take on supervisory roles.
The CMCC in Kiryat Gat, established last month to coordinate ceasefire monitoring and aid delivery, is already replacing Israel as the main “overseer” of humanitarian operations, according to the Washington Post.
Over 40 countries participate in the center’s work, which US Navy Captain Tim Hawkins said helps “sort through fact from fiction and get a clearer understanding of what is happening on the ground.”
Despite Washington’s takeover, aid flow into Gaza remains severely restricted.
Gaza’s Government Media Office said that since the US-backed plan took effect, only 28 percent of the agreed 600 daily aid trucks have entered the enclave, and that over 240 Palestinians have been killed under the so-called ceasefire that took effect last month.