US considering plans to build large military base on Israel-Gaza border, Shomrim reports - Yonah Jeremy Bob, Jerusalem Post Staff

 

by Yonah Jeremy Bob, Jerusalem Post Staff

The prospective site would allegedly be capable of housing thousands of American troops and serve future international stabilization efforts.

 

Israeli military personnel operate after a series of strikes across the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, October 29, 2025

(photo credit: REUTERS/AMMAR AWAD)

 

The US is exploring plans to build a large military base along Israel’s border with Gaza, according to an investigative report by Shomrim on Tuesday.

The prospective site would allegedly be capable of housing thousands of American troops and serve future international stabilization efforts, according to Shomrim.

IDF sources said they were either unaware or had few details about the new concept of a large-scale US base on Israel's border with Gaza, which could hold thousands of American soldiers.

Base could enhance US's ability to directly control events on ground in Gaza

According to reports, part of the purpose of the base would be to enhance the US's ability to directly control events on the ground and to be less reliant on Israeli cooperation in dealing with diverse parties, whether Hamas, Egypt, the Palestinian Authority, or other third parties assisting in managing Gaza.

That said, the IDF's unfamiliarity with the idea means it may still not happen, or it may be a more distant idea that would take time to negotiate and bring to fruition.

Israeli tanks stand near the border with the Gaza Strip as seen from a position on the Israeli side of the border on October 29, 2025 in Southern Israel, Israel. (credit: Amir Levy/Getty Images)

Alternatively, Netanyahu may already have agreed to such a change without informing the IDF, something he has done from time to time on issues with sensitive political implications for him.

At the end of October, the US's new Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) started operating in Kiryat Gat.

However, that office is expected to hold no more than a couple of hundred American soldiers and allied officials, which gives it more of a coordinating purpose than an ability to act independently and concretely in the field.

US CENTCOM officials have described the CMCC near Kiryat Gat as a hub for coordinating international, humanitarian, and military channels tied to Gaza, saying it began operating in late October and aims to streamline decision-making across partners.

During a visit to the site, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said disarming Hamas and demilitarizing Gaza “will be achieved,” as senior IDF officers joined him for a tour of the facility.

The CMCC has also featured in recent US-Israel consultations in Tel Aviv between the IDF chief of staff and the US chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, focused on next steps for Gaza stabilization.

Yonah Jeremy Bob, Jerusalem Post Staff

Source: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-873466

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