JD Vance: We have a very tough task ahead of us to disarm Hamas but rebuild Gaza

• US Vice President JD Vance says disarming Hamas and rebuilding Gaza will be very challenging.
• Vance spoke alongside 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
• He is in 'Israel' to support the US-brokered Gaza ceasefire and reconstruction plans.

US Vice President JD Vance warned Wednesday that significant obstacles remain in both disarming Hamas and rebuilding Gaza, even as a US-brokered ceasefire between 'Israel' and the Palestinian group remains in effect.

"We have a very, very tough task ahead of us, which is to disarm Hamas but rebuild Gaza, to make life better for the people of Gaza, but also to ensure that Hamas is no longer a threat to our friends in Israel," Vance said during a joint press conference with 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.

Vance is visiting 'Israel' to reinforce support for the ceasefire and the plans for post-war reconstruction negotiated by US President Donald Trump.

Earlier, during a press briefing in Kiryat Gat, a southern 'Israeli' city where a US-led team is monitoring the truce, Vance expressed "great optimism" about the deal holding, while noting that Washington would not impose a strict timeline for Hamas to disarm.

Netanyahu also addressed the "day after," outlining preliminary ideas for Gaza’s civil administration and security. "We're just creating an unbelievable day after with a completely new vision of how to have the civil government, how to have the security there, who could provide that security there," he said.

He acknowledged the scale of the task but stressed its potential, "It's not going to be easy, but I think it's possible... we're really creating a peace plan and an infrastructure here where nothing existed even a week and a day ago. That's going to require a lot of work. It requires a lot of ingenuity."

Vance added that the Gaza agreement could help strengthen broader regional alliances for 'Israel'. "I think this Gaza deal is a critical piece of unlocking the Abraham Accords," he said, referring to the 2020 normalization agreements between 'Israel' and several Arab nations.

"But what it could allow is an alliance structure in the Middle East that perseveres, that endures, and that allows the good people in this region, the world, to step up and take ownership of their own backyard," Vance added.