LONDON — The U.K. has sent military personnel to Israel to help oversee the ceasefire in Gaza, as the U.S. tries to shore up a fragile truce brokered by Donald Trump.
They will join a U.S.-led multinational task force in Israel, known as a civil-military coordination center, which is overseeing the progress of the ceasefire agreement and helping to coordinate humanitarian assistance.
A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said “a small number of U.K. planning officers” were now embedded, including a 2-star deputy commander, “to ensure that the U.K. remains integrated into the U.S.-led planning efforts for Gaza post-conflict stability.”
“The U.K. continues to work with international partners to support the Gaza ceasefire to see where the U.K. can best contribute to the peace process,” the spokesperson added.
The British deputy commander will lead work to decide what further contribution Britain can make, according to defense officials.
Keir Starmer’s government has been keen to support the implementation of Trump’s 20-point peace plan, which has been tested in the last week by violence carried out on both sides.
Israel said a Hamas attack killed two soldiers on Sunday. Israel responded with air strikes, which killed dozens of Palestinians.
US Vice President JD Vance, nonetheless, insisted the agreement was “going better than expected” on a visit to Israel, aimed at maintaining momentum towards talks on the second phase of Trump’s plan.
Keir Starmer has argued that the U.K. can play a key role in efforts to stabilize Gaza, both by contributing to the monitoring process and advising on the decommissioning of Hamas’s weapons, drawing on experience in Northern Ireland.
There are no plans to send British troops into Gaza, however, and officers are not being sent into a combat zone.
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