On Sunday, Hebrew Channel 12 reported that a US military force will begin operations today at the Hatzor Airbase in southern Israel to monitor the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

The channel quoted an unnamed Israeli official saying that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, envoys of US President Donald Trump, are in Israel to ensure full implementation of the first phase of the war-ending agreement, while already considering the next phase.

The source mentioned the visit of Witkoff, Kushner, and US Central Command (CENTCOM) commander Admiral Brad Cooper to Gaza on Saturday.

The visit aimed to inspect the areas from which the Israeli army withdrew and to discuss coordination mechanisms to oversee the ceasefire. Admiral Cooper posted: “I just returned from a visit inside Gaza to discuss how to establish a coordination center for post-conflict stability support activities.”

Cooper added that “the great effort to achieve peace in the Middle East will be accomplished without US troops on the ground in Gaza.”

According to the Israeli army radio, Cooper’s statement implies that the US military intends to establish a special command and military monitoring center overseeing the situation in Gaza and following up on the ceasefire agreement and the “Trump” plan, to be located on Israeli territory at a military base.

Today, the US ceasefire monitoring task force in Gaza begins its mission at Hatzor Airbase, with at least 200 US soldiers stationed there for this task, the channel explained.

No official statement has been issued by the involved parties regarding this US force.

The channel quoted an Israeli security official saying that Israel is not discussing the next withdrawal from Gaza at this stage, but another Israeli official said Witkoff and his team have started working on maps for the next withdrawal.

The same official added that Witkoff’s visit to Gaza also aimed to review the deployment locations of the international stabilization force, which will consist of soldiers from Islamic, Arab, and European countries, according to the channel.

Under the agreement, the Israeli army will not carry out any further withdrawals until the international stabilization force enters Gaza.

The force will be stationed between the urban areas of Gaza, from which the Israeli army withdrew, and the border fence with Israel.

Witkoff, Kushner, and Admiral Cooper met on Friday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior security officials to discuss the entry of the international stabilization force into Gaza.

The channel expects it will take several weeks before the force is ready to enter Gaza.

Arab countries demand that the force’s authorities be defined by a United Nations Security Council resolution, while Israel is cautious about such a step as it might restrict its military freedom of action.

The issue of the international force is expected to be one of the topics discussed at the leaders’ summit that President Trump will hold in Egypt on Monday after his visit to Israel.

On Saturday, the Egyptian presidency announced an international summit in Sharm El-Sheikh on Monday, co-chaired by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and US President Donald Trump, with participation from leaders of more than 20 countries.

According to the Egyptian presidency, the summit aims to end the war in Gaza, enhance efforts to establish peace and stability in the Middle East, and open a new chapter of regional security and stability.

On Thursday, Trump announced that Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement on the first phase of his ceasefire and prisoner exchange plan following indirect negotiations in Sharm El-Sheikh, with participation from Turkey, Egypt, and Qatar, under US supervision.

The first phase of the agreement came into effect at 12:00 noon Friday Jerusalem time (09:00 GMT), after being approved by the Israeli government at dawn.