Vice President, negotiators, in Israel to smooth ceasefire

Vice President J.D. Vance arrived in Israel on Tuesday with his wife, Usha, and Trump administration negotiators to iron out the fresh ceasefire in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said he planned to meet with the delegation and discuss security challenges with the ceasefire that began Oct. 10. He also hoped to discuss the political opportunities within the region that the ceasefire afforded.

President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Netanyahu after arriving on Monday, before meeting with Israeli hostages released by Hamas in Tel Aviv on Tuesday.

Vance’s trip came days after violence threatened to derail the peace process. An alleged Hamas rocket attack killed two Israeli soldiers over the weekend. The terror group denied breaching the ceasefire. Israel launched a massive counterstrike on Hamas infrastructure across Gaza, according to a Sunday statement from the Israeli military.

What does this breach mean for the ceasefire? The ceasefire agreement remained in place on Tuesday despite the violations over the weekend. Vance appeared unsurprised by the fiery exchange when talking to reporters on Sunday—saying that there would be fluctuations or setbacks in the process. Even if the ceasefire brings the sustainable peace hoped for, there will still be fits and starts, Vance said. President Donald Trump said in a Tuesday statement that U.S. allies in the Middle East could into Gaza and force the terror group to comply with the ceasefire deal.

How has the ceasefire progressed otherwise? The Israeli military reported Monday that another coffin with hostage remains was escorted into Israel by the Red Cross. The remains of 16 hostages are still in Gaza, according to Netanyahu. Israelis are working nonstop with the sacred mission of gathering and returning hostage remains, he added.

Hamas Chief Negotiator Khalil Al-Hayya said Tuesday the terror group is serious about returning those hostage remains. Al-Hayya described difficulties with finding the bodies, saying that many bodies are buried under rubble. This will take time and equipment, he said. Red Cross officials who are helping return remains cited similar difficulties last week.

Dig deeper: Read my report for more about the challenges with returning hostage remains.