US military opens coordination center in Israel for Gaza stabilization and aid efforts amid ceasefire

Five days after world leaders endorsed a U.S.-brokered plan to end the Israel-Hamas war, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) on Friday opened a Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) in southern Israel to serve as the main hub for Gaza stabilization efforts.

The CMCC is designed to support stabilization efforts, according to a news release. 

Sources told Fox News last week that roughly 200 U.S. troops had arrived in Israel, along with a C-17 transport plane packed with command-and-control equipment and supplies.

U.S. military personnel will not deploy into Gaza, focusing on facilitating the flow of humanitarian, logistical and security assistance from international counterparts into Gaza.

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Vice President JD Vance, center, and CENTCOM Adm. Brad Cooper, left, look on as U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff speaks following a military briefing at the Civilian Military Coordination Center in southern Israel on Tuesday. (Nathan Howard/The New York Times via AP, Pool)

“Bringing together stakeholders who share the goal of successful stabilization in Gaza is essential for a peaceful transition,” CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper said in a news release. “Over the next two weeks, U.S. personnel will integrate representatives from partner nations, non-governmental organizations, international institutions, and the private sector as they arrive to the coordination center.”

The CMCC will also oversee implementation of the ceasefire agreement, with an operations floor designed to track real-time developments in Gaza. 

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A Palestinian man collects food from a humanitarian aid distribution point in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza.  (Ahmad Salem/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Its offices and meeting spaces are structured to “foster collaborative planning among leaders, representatives and staff,” according to the release.

Fox News has learned that the CMCC will be located a few miles northeast of Gaza.

About 200 U.S. service members with expertise in transportation, planning, security, logistics and engineering established the CMCC under the leadership of U.S. Army Central commander Lt. Gen. Patrick Frank.

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Destroyed buildings lie in Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the border. (Reuters)

“The team worked tirelessly to build the CMCC from the ground up,” Cooper wrote in a statement. “They can take great pride in knowing that they have built something that is critical to enabling the transition to civilian governance in Gaza.”

Due to the large tunnel network under Gaza City, tunnels will need to be filled to make the ground stable enough for construction.

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Hamas has yet to return all 28 bodies of deceased hostages, delaying the start of the next stage. 

Israel, which has reiterated its commitment to recovering every hostage’s remains, received the bodies of seven identified hostages this week, along with one Palestinian mistakenly included among them.

Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin and Fox News Digital’s Rachel Wolf contributed to this report.