Vice President JD Vance warned Wednesday that the United States and allies face a tough task disarming Hamas and building a peaceful future for Gaza, as Washington sought to reassure Israel over the next steps in its ambitious ceasefire deal.
Vance met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the second day of a trip to Israel, part of a diplomatic blitz in support of the US-brokered plan to end the fighting, recover hostages and, eventually, rebuild the devastated Palestinian territory.
"We have a very, very tough task ahead of us, which is to disarm Hamas but rebuild Gaza, to make life better for the people of Gaza, but also to ensure that Hamas is no longer a threat to our friends in Israel," Vance said.
Washington's top diplomat, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is due in Israel on Thurs