Former Obama defense secretary wastes no time pushing for US boots on ground in Gaza

Former Obama Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta on Monday advocated for an American military presence in Gaza mere days after President Donald Trump announced an agreement to the first phase of a peace deal between Israel and Hamas.

The Trump administration, after announcing the agreement on Thursday, asserted that it would not deploy American troops to Gaza, Politico reported on Sunday. However, Panetta argued on “CNN News Central” that American troops in Gaza would be crucial to accomplishing the remaining negotiations.

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“I think a U.S. troop presence makes sense. I know that the security forces there are going to be made up of countries in the region, and that makes sense,” Panetta said. “But I think it’s good to have the United States have a presence there in order to make clear to the other parties that the United States isn’t going anywhere and that we’re going to see that the second stage of these negotiations are accomplished.”

“I think it’s good to start with 200 of the U.S. forces … because, frankly, I think it’s the symbolism of having the United States presence there that’s important at this point,” he added. “My hope is that ultimately, if you can put together a security force of some 40,000, largely made up of the other countries in the region, that they can play an even bigger role in making sure that security is protected in Gaza. I think they will be the ones primarily responsible for that happening. But to have the U.S. presence there, to have our leadership there, I think, is going to be required.”

Vice President JD Vance asserted on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” Sunday that there were no plans for American troops to be on the ground in Israel or Gaza.

“We’re not planning to put boots on the ground. What we already have is a U.S. Central Command. We already have people in that region of the world. They’re gonna monitor the terms of the ceasefire,” Vance said. “They’re gonna monitor, ensure that the humanitarian aid is flowing. They actually confirmed yesterday that Israel pulled back to the agreed-upon lines, which, of course, is the first condition.”

“The second condition, or the second term, is for the hostages to be released,” he added. “So we have people in that region of the world who are gonna monitor parts of this peace proposal, but the president is not planning to put boots on the ground in Israel.”

The U.S. reportedly plans to send 200 troops to Israel to supervise Trump’s Gaza ceasefire deal. However, Vance asserted on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that the story was inaccurate.

“So, that story is actually misreported. We already have troops at Central Command. We’ve had them for decades in this country. They’re going to monitor the terms of the ceasefire,” Vance said. “That’s everything from ensuring that the Israeli troops are at the agreed-upon line, ensuring that Hamas is not attacking innocent Israelis, doing everything that they can to ensure the peace that we’ve created, actually sustains and endures.”

Trump traveled to the Middle East on Monday to celebrate and supervise the first phase of the deal, which included the release of all the hostages taken by Hamas during its Oct. 7, 2023, attack. The terrorist organization released all 20 surviving Israeli hostages on Monday.

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