Launched after the start of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire to monitor the truce and facilitate the flow of humanitarian aid, the Civil-Military Coordination Center for Gaza is struggling to live up to its promises.

The CMCC, a US initiative, is meant to set the stage for the next steps of President Donald Trump’s peace plan for the Palestinian territory following more than two years of devastating war sparked by the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led assault on Israel.

“At first, nobody knew what it was, but everyone wanted in,” one European diplomat told AFP.

“Now people are a bit disillusioned, because we feel like nothing is moving, but we have no choice… It’s either that or speaking with Israelis informally,” the diplomat added.

“There are times when you think we’ve hit rock bottom, but we keep digging,” quipped a humanitarian source who has been to the center several times to discuss shelters for the hundreds of thousands of Gazans displaced by Israel’s military campaign.

The CMCC — based in a large warehouse in the southern Israeli city of Kiryat Gat — was presented to stakeholders such as NGOs, UN agencies and diplomats, as a generator of novel ideas for post-war Gaza.

“When we opened it, we made clear that it’s focused really on two things. One is facilitating the flow of humanitarian, logistical and security assistance into Gaza. And two, helping monitor in real time, implementation of the ceasefire agreement,” Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for the US Central Command (CENTCOM), told AFP.

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© The Times of Israel