Jerusalem, Oct 23: As US Vice President JD Vance’s visit to Israel comes to a close, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would be travelling to the country to keep the momentum on the US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Earlier this week, Vance announced the opening of a civilian military coordination centre in southern Israel where some 200 US troops are working alongside the Israeli military and delegations from other countries planning the stabilisation and reconstruction of Gaza.
Rubio told journalists at Joint Base Andrews late Wednesday that he plans to visit the centre and appoint a Foreign Service official to work alongside the top US military commander in the Middle East, Vice Adm Brad Cooper.
The US is seeking support from other allies, especially Gulf nations, to create an international stabilisation force to be deployed to Gaza and train a Palestinian force.
“We’d like to see Palestinian police forces in Gaza that are not Hamas and that are going to do a good job, but those still have to be trained and equipped,” he said.
Rubio also criticised efforts by far-right politicians in the Israeli parliament who on Wednesday took the symbolic step of giving preliminary approval to a bill that would give Israel authority to annex the occupied West Bank — a move the US opposes.
“(President Donal Trump) has made clear that’s not something we’d be supportive of right now, and we think it’s potentially threatening to the peace deal,” he said.
The bill passed in a 25-24 vote. It is unclear whether the bill has support to win a majority in the 120-seat parliament, and Netanyahu has tools to delay or defeat it.
Vance visits Holy Sepulcher
Meanwhile, Vance visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the sprawling 12th century basilica where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, died and rose again, in Jerusalem’s Old City.
He is then expected to meet Israel’s Defense Minister, Israeli military leaders and other officials at the army’s headquarters in Tel Aviv.
On Wednesday, Vance sought to ease concerns that the Trump administration was dictating terms to its closest ally in the Middle East.
“We don’t want in Israel a vassal state, and that’s not what Israel is. We want a partnership, we want an ally,” Vance said beside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in response to a reporter’s question about whether Israel was becoming a “protectorate” of the US.
Netanyahu, who will meet with Rubio on Friday, expressed similar sentiments while acknowledging differences of opinion as they push forward the US-proposed ceasefire agreement.
Court hearing on journalists’ access to Gaza
Separately on Thursday, Israel’s Supreme Court held a hearing into whether to open the Gaza Strip to the international media and gave the state 30 days to present a new position in light of the new situation under the ceasefire.
Israel has blocked reporters from entering Gaza since the war erupted on Oct 7, 2023.
The Foreign Press Association, which represents dozens of international news organisations including The Associated Press, had asked the court to order the government to open the border.
The court rejected a request from the FPA early in the war, due to objections by the government on security grounds. The group filed a second request for access in September 2024. The government has repeatedly delayed the case.
Palestinian journalists have covered the two-year war for international media. But like all Palestinians, they have been subject to tough restrictions on movement and shortages of food, repeatedly displaced and operated under great danger. Some 200 Palestinian journalists have been killed by Israeli fire, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
“It is time for Israel to lift the closure and let us do our work alongside our Palestinian colleagues,” said Tania Kraemer, chairperson of the FPA. (AP)
