US to send 200 troops to monitor Gaza ceasefire

The United States is sending up to 200 troops to Israel to monitor the implementation of a ceasefire in Gaza. 

U.S. Central Command is leading a new multinational task force that will facilitate aid and security assistance into Gaza, following two years of war. The new Civil-Military Coordination Center will be set up in Israel and work with non governmental organizations, private sector elements and partner nations. The announcement comes after a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas was announced this week, with the first phase of it starting to be implemented.

A U.S. official told Task & Purpose that some of the force is already on the ground, doing a site survey for the center. The rest will arrive in Israel by Sunday. The American element will be a joint force, made up of service members with expertise in transportation, logistics, planning and engineering, the official said. Service members will not deploy into the Palestinian territory. 

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A tentative ceasefire agreement was announced on Thursday, after two years of war following the Oct. 7, 2023 attack in Israel. It went into effect today, with a 72-hour period starting that is expected to see the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners. Israeli forces will partially withdraw and aid will be allowed into the Gaza Strip. Since October 2023, more than 1,100 Israelis have died and at least 61,709 people have been killed in Gaza, with more than double that injured, according to al Jazeera. Thousands are also missing. 

The task force will also include troops from Turkey, Egypt, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, the Associated Press reported.

A U.S. Air Force loadmaster releases 66 humanitarian aid pallets of food over Gaza, March 2, 2024. (Staff Sgt. Jasmonet Holmes/U.S. Air Force)

The United States had already deployed roughly 200 soldiers to Israel over the last year. In October 2024, the U.S. sent a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, missile defense system, crewed by roughly 100 soldiers. A second one was sent in the spring. According to Pentagon documents, the U.S. fired approximately 150 of its THAAD interceptor missiles during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran, a quarter of its total stockpile. If both THAAD systems are still in Israel, the new deployment doubles the amount of American troops sent there. A U.S. official declined to comment on the THAAD deployments.

An earlier deployment of American forces to waters around Israel and Gaza set up a pier for aid into Gaza lasted only a few weeks, with the pier in operation for only 20 days. American forces also carried out air drops of aid into Gaza.