Despite recent violence, Vance remains 'very optimistic' about Gaza ceasefirepublished at 18:22 BST 21 October

18:22 BST 21 October

Lucy Williamson
Reporting from JD Vance's news conference

Image source, Reuters

Speaking to media in a cavernous concrete hangar laid with bright green astroturf, the US vice-president came with an upbeat message, at a critical time for Donald Trump’s peace deal.

The choice of venue – a new US-led centre to co-ordinate foreign forces meant to secure Gaza in the next stage of the deal – was meant as a sign that the deal was moving forward.

JD Vance said he had "real optimism" the ceasefire would hold, despite it briefly fracturing two days ago.

"There are going to be moments where it looks like things aren't going particularly well, but given that and given the history of conflict, I think that everybody should be proud of where we are today," he said. "Right now I feel very optimistic. Can I say with 100% certainty that it's gonna work? No. But you don't do difficult things by only doing what's 100% certain."

Both Israel and Hamas have reaped rewards from phase one of the deal. Phase two requires them to make tough concessions, including giving up their respective control in Gaza.

Vance said the US did not have an explicit deadline for Hamas to disarm, but that if the group did not comply, "very bad things" would happen.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that any violation by Hamas – including a failure to disarm – would allow Israel to return to war.

The US has so far shown more tolerance for hiccups and delays in this process. And several Israeli commentators have pointed out that the real decisions over Israel’s military action in Gaza are now being made in Washington.

We are closing our live coverage for now. You can read our news story here for the latest development. Thank you for joining us.

Vance proves just how involved US is in Gaza peace processpublished at 18:14 BST 21 October

18:14 BST 21 October

Hugo Bachega
Middle East correspondent, reporting from Jerusalem

Image source, Reuters

US Vice-President JD Vance tried to strike a positive tone, saying he was "optimistic" and "confident" that the ceasefire was going to hold, and that President Trump’s plan for Gaza was going to succeed.

He seemed to downplay the deadly incidents in Gaza last weekend, blaming the media along the way, saying they were part of the process.

There is still no timeline for discussions over the remaining - and most difficult - points of the plan which, as it stands, is more of a framework.

Vance acknowledged that "it was going to take some time" to iron out those issues, but offered no indication about what might happen next, or how that would be achieved.

One thing he did say, though, was that there would be no deadline for Hamas to disarm, which is a key Israeli demand so far rejected by the group.

He repeated President Trump's threat that if that does not happen, Hamas would be "obliterated".

There were no details about the formation of an International Stabilisation Force, apart from the vague mention that some countries would be interested in the effort. How that will happen amid the possibility that foreign troops could end up engaged in confrontations with Hamas fighters remains unclear.

Still, the news conference was another demonstration of how involved the Trump administration is in this process - and how much it wants the deal to survive.

Israeli newspapers this morning framed the visit of the vice-president, as well as Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, as having the goal of moving forward with the plan but also of warning the Israeli government that it should not do anything to jeopardise it.

Coinciding with the American tour, the Israeli military has begun setting up concrete marks in Gaza to indicate the "yellow line" that demarcates the area it controls.

With few expecting significant progress any time soon, one commentator in Israel said that this was the new de-facto border with Gaza.

Gaza needs a political solution - not just a military onepublished at 18:01 BST 21 October

18:01 BST 21 October

Tom Bateman
US State Department correspondent

Image source, Reuters

We got a clearer picture from Vance, Witkoff and Kusher just a bit ago about what they're trying to organise on the ground in Gaza.

Remember, there is no progress yet on agreement between Israel and Hamas for the so-called "phase two" of the truce, which would deal with Gaza's long-term governance and security, and the proposed disarmament of Hamas.

In the meantime, Israel is occupying roughly half of the territory, behind a "yellow line", which it is currently reinforcing with concrete blocks. Hamas remains in control of most of the territory along the coastline, including in Gaza City.

Temporary measures in the region have a habit of becoming permanent, so it matters how things are unfolding right now.

If the Israelis remain in control of this outer half of Gaza, they will have no inclination to run a street-by-street military occupation. You would see the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) taking up swathes of strategic ground in highly militarised zones and secured bases behind checkpoints, as it is now.

That’s why the Americans want to get a so-called International Stabilisation Force (ISF) in place, made up mostly of troops from Arab and Muslim countries who would do on-the-ground security, could be a buffer force on the yellow line, and would install and train up a local Palestinian police. This would help shore up the conditions for reconstruction, with Kushner and Witkoff trying to get investment from their wealthy friends in the Gulf.

The US wants Hamas to disarm, but is wary that it won't. In the minds of the Americans, the IDF/ISF zone behind the yellow line becomes a haven for both ordinary Palestinians and armed rivals of Hamas to be, as Kushner put it, in a "relatively safe" zone.

The problem with this perspective is it ignores the long history of the reality for ordinary Palestinians living under Israeli military occupation, which is far from safe for them.

There is also the record of Hamas (or its remnants now) trying to implement ruthless internal control and the risk of intra-Palestinian armed conflict. The Americans will hope the involvement of Arab forces on the ground, overseen by the US military in Israel, will shift the dynamics, but it might also contain the ingredients of even further conflict.

A best case scenario is this becomes a transitional arrangement. But it ultimately comes back to the need for an agreed long-term political solution between Israelis and Palestinians, rather than just a military and financial one.

Earlier in the news conference, US Vice-President JD Vance acknowledged that returning the bodies of Israeli hostages is "difficult" and "is not going to happen overnight".

But there has been some progress.

Hamas's armed wing, al-Qassam Brigades, says it will return the bodies of two more Israeli hostages at 21:00 local time (19:00 BST) tonight.

So far, Hamas has handed over 13 out of 28 deceased hostages. All living hostages have been returned.

Hamas is expected to return all the hostages - dead or alive - to Israel, but the Palestinian group says it is struggling to find the remaining bodies under the rubble in Gaza. Israel has expressed anger about this.

Jamie Whitehead
Live reporter

In his news conference, JD Vance announced the opening of the Civilian Military Co-operation Center (CMCC), which is being used to oversee the rebuilding of Gaza.

Information on this centre is minimal.

Ten days ago, US Central Command - part of the Department of War - released a statement on behalf of its commander, Admiral Brad Cooper, external.

The CMCC "will synchronise activities to support post-conflict stabilisation," he says.

Similar to remarks made earlier by the US vice-president, Admiral Cooper goes on to say "America’s sons and daughters in uniform are answering the call to deliver peace in the Middle East," adding that there will "be no US boots on the ground in Gaza".

Image source, Reuters

There are quite a few major points from the news conference earlier. Here’s a round-up:

• US Vice-President JD Vance is "very optimistic" the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas will hold, saying it is "in very good place"
• He says the process of returning the remains of Israeli hostages to their families will not "happen overnight" because of the difficulties locating bodies
• Washington is not setting a deadline for Hamas to disarm, according to Vance
• When asked what the leadership in Gaza will become, Vance says "I don't know"
• Vance has also announced the opening of the Civilian Military Co-operation Center to start rebuilding Gaza
• But funds to pay for the reconstruction of Gaza will not go to areas controlled by Hamas, US envoy Jared Kushner says

Image source, Reuters

Vance is finishing his remarks by asking Christians to pray for peace.

He says he plans to visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Christians believe Jesus was crucified.

"Christians have many titles for Jesus Christ, and one of them is the Prince of Peace," Vance says.

"I ask all people of faith, in particular my fellow Christians, to pray that the Prince of Peace can continue to work a miracle in this region of the world.

I think that we have made incredible strides over the past week. We're going to have to make a lot more, but I think with your prayers, with God's providence, and with a very good team behind me, I think we're gonna get it done."

Vance is asked for more details on the international security force.

According to Donald Trump's plan, the US will work with Arab and international partners to develop a temporary International Stabilisation Force to deploy in Gaza. This force is intended to be the long-term internal security solution.

The vice-president says that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump's envoys, are working on it "right now".

He confirms there will be no "American boots" on the ground in Gaza, but says it will provide "useful co-ordination" between several countries.

"The only real mediator is the US," he adds.

Image source, Reuters

Vance is now asked what he thinks the ultimate leadership in Gaza could look like.

"I don't know," he says, but adds that they're creating a governance structure "that is very flexible" to what happens in the future.

He says both the Palestinians living in Gaza and the Israelis need to be able to live in stability and security. Once this point is reached, "we'll worry about the long-term governance of Gaza," he says, but food and medicine are a priority.

• Whether Hamas will give up control of Gaza is a key issue in the peace plan - read our in-depth analysis here

Jared Kushner is speaking again now about future reconstruction.

He says there will be no reconstruction funds going into areas controlled by Hamas.

He says consideration is being given to how to start reconstruction in areas controlled by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

He refers to this as the "new Gaza" - a place where people can "live" and "get jobs".

• Take a look at our earlier post on just how big the task of rebuilding Gaza is

Image source, Reuters

Will Hamas truly disarm? Vance is asked.

He says he’s confident right now that the peace will hold, and that disarmament is part of the 20-point peace plan proposed by Donald Trump.

If they don’t, Trump has said Hamas will be obliterated, Vance adds.

The vice-president says he won’t put a specific deadline on the disarmament timeline, and says Trump won’t do that either.

He says part of achieving this is setting up an international security force to make Gaza safe.

Vance is now asked about Hamas returning the remains of all the deceased Israeli hostages.

According to the ceasefire deal, Hamas has to return all the bodies to Israel, but so far only 13 out of 28 have been returned. Hamas says it's having difficulties getting the bodies. Israel has expressed anger about this.

Vance says it's a "focus" to get the bodies back to their families so a proper burial can take place.

But he adds, "this is difficult, this is not going to happen overnight".

He explains that some of the hostages are buried under thousands of pounds of rubble, while the whereabouts of others is completely unknown.

Vance says that doesn't mean the work to recover them will stop, or that there's a lack of confidence in finding the remains, but he stresses there needs to be patience: "This is going to take a little bit of time."

Vance is here at a critical momentpublished at 16:33 BST 21 October

16:33 BST 21 October

Lucy Williamson
Reporting from JD Vance's news conference

To meet the US vice-president, we were brought with other media to a large concrete hangar near Ashkelon in southern Israel - the site of a new coordination centre set up by the US to oversee the next steps in this peace deal.

Vice-President Vance is coming at a critical moment for this deal.

The rewards of phase one - though not complete - have largely been delivered: 33 hostages, living and dead, have been returned to Israel and more than 2,000 Palestinian prisoners or their remains have been released.

Now both Israel and Hamas face the sticky challenges that loom in the next phase of this deal - that require both to give up their respective control over Gaza, while trying to hold on to their power.

Image source, Reuters

Vance is then asked how likely it is that the ceasefire will hold.

The past week has given me "great optimism," Vance replies.

There will be moments where it looks like things aren't going well, he continues, and it will require mediation, supervision and monitoring.

"Right now, I feel very optimistic," he says, as the ceasefire is "in very good place".

"Can I say with 100% certainty that it's going to work, no," he adds. But you don't do difficult things by only doing what's 100% certain - you do them by trying, he tells the news conference.

As a reminder, conflict between Hamas and Israel broke out on Sunday, leading to worries that the ceasefire may not hold - you can find out more in our earlier post.

JD Vance then starts taking questions.

He is first asked what role Turkey will play in the deal, given accusations against it of supporting Hamas in the past.

Vance says he thinks "everybody has a role to play here" - this could be financial, construction or communication.

He adds that he does think there is a "constructive role" for Turkey.

Image source, EPA

Kushner thanks the coordinators.

He points to the flags behind him - which include flags from various countries such as the UK, Canada and Germany - and says these are some of the countries taking part.

He describes the "round the clock effort" and says "everyone believes it is possible to create something better in Gaza".

He adds that he believes "a great outcome is possible" if everyone works together.

Trump's advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner is speaking now.

He says the ceasefire process has moved towards getting the bodies of the deceased out and to their families.

There has been strong co-ordination between the UN and Israel, he says, to reach people in Gaza and not let aid fall into the "wrong hands" there.

The pace of work at the new command centre means there'll be even more progress in another week, he says.

Just like Vance, he says some people are getting worked up about "various incursions" - but both sides are doing a lot to de-escalate tensions.

Witkoff says that this morning he and Trump's advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner met with 10 Israeli hostages and their families.

He says there were lots of tears, but adds that he didn't see any victims in the room - he saw strong people who have emerged from very difficult circumstances.

Witkoff says it was his privilege as an American to be there.

Image source, Reuters

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is speaking now.

He says the US team is "exceeding where we thought we would be at this time" with implementing the ceasefire.

The Civilian Military Co-operation Center will also be used in other conflicts, Witkoff says, "as we figure out all of the intricate to modulate a peace deal... go from war to peace".

Vance goes on to criticise what he calls a "weird attitude" in American and western media towards the ceasefire.

He describes this as a "desire to root for failure".

He says that every time something bad happens or there's an act of violence, there's an "inclination" to say the ceasefire is over.