200 US troops to take part in Gaza 'joint task force': US officials

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - About 200 US troops will take part in a multinational force that will monitor and help implement a ceasefire in the besieged Gaza Strip, US officials said Thursday.

One of the officials, who like the other official briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, maintained that "no US troops are intended to go into Gaza." The exact location where they will be staged is expected to be discussed Friday.

The official said they would instead be tasked initially with establishing an initial "joint control center" before working to integrate with forces from other countries "to deconflict with the IDF, and then to build the right force structure that's able to handle the missions as they are defined."

US Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Adm. Bradley Cooper will "oversee, observe, make sure there are no violations, incursions. Everybody's worried about the other side," the other official said.

"Much of this is going to be oversight," he said.

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said the US force will total up to 200 troops "who are already stationed at CENTCOM." They "will be tasked with monitoring the peace agreement in Israel, and they will work with other international forces on the ground," she said on the US social media company X’s platform.

One of the officials said the US is engaged with "multiple governments" over the creation of what is being called the "International Stabilization Force," which will use the work done by the joint task force as it prepares to replace Israeli forces in Gaza along what is being called the "yellow line."

The term has been used to refer to the area from which Israel is expected to initially withdraw under President Donald Trump's plan.

"And then there'll be discussions, and then we'll see if there really is a true pathway for, I think we're using a decommissioning of the military installations in Gaza and the heavy arms in order to get that going," one of the officials said.

"So that's kind of what we're working on right now, but I think more will come out over time. I think right now, we're just focused on making sure any gaps are patched up in in the agreement," the official added.

Trump announced Wednesday that Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a 20-point plan he laid out on Sept. 29 to bring a ceasefire to Gaza, release all Israeli captives being held there in exchange for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the entire Gaza Strip.

A second phase of the plan calls for the establishment of a new governing mechanism in Gaza without Hamas’ participation, the formation of a security force comprising Palestinians and troops from Arab and Islamic countries, and the disarmament of Hamas.

It also stipulates Arab and Islamic funding for the new administration and the reconstruction of the Strip, with limited participation from the Palestinian Authority.

Arab and Muslim counties have largely welcomed the plan, but some officials have also said that many details in it need discussion and negotiations to be fully implemented.