WASHINGTON (TNND) — Vice President JD Vance is expected to visit Israel with a US delegation sometime this week, amid the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are also expected to travel to Israel and be involved with Vance’s visit.
“We’re trying to figure it out,” Vance told reporters, saying the administration wants to “go and check on how things are going.” Regarding the ceasefire, he said that “there’s going to be fits and starts.”
On Sunday, Israeli forces said that Hamas killed two soldiers, leading them to launch a wave of deadly strikes and stopping the transfer of aid into the territory.
The military later said it resumed enforcing the ceasefire, and the official confirmed that aid deliveries would resume Monday.
A senior Egyptian official involved in the ceasefire negotiations said “round-the-clock” contacts were underway to de-escalate the situation. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak to reporters.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directed the military to take “strong action” against any ceasefire violations but didn’t threaten to return to war.
Israel’s military said militants had fired at troops in areas of Rafah city that are Israeli-controlled according to agreed-upon ceasefire lines.
Hamas, which continued to accuse Israel of multiple ceasefire violations, said communication with its remaining units in Rafah had been cut off for months and “we are not responsible for any incidents occurring in those areas.”
A little over a week has passed since the start of the U.S.-proposed ceasefire aimed at ending two years of war. U.S. President Donald Trump said the ceasefire remained in place and “we want to make sure it’s going to be very peaceful.”
He told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday that Hamas has been “quite rambunctious” and “they’ve been doing some shooting.” He suggested that the violence might be the fault of “rebels” within the organization rather than its leadership.
“It’s going to be handled toughly but properly,” he said. Trump did not say whether he thought the Israeli strikes were justified, saying “it’s under review.”
The Trump administration is working to implement the next phase of the peace deal, with the next stages expected to focus on disarming Hamas, Israeli withdrawal from additional areas it controls in Gaza, and future governance of the devastated territory.
Editor’s Note: The Associated Press contributed to this story.