The United States will deploy up to 200 troops to Israel to form a new coordination mission for Gaza that will include military personnel from Turkey, marking the first practical cooperation between the Turkish and Israeli militaries in more than a decade.
US officials said Thursday that the troops will establish a Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) to oversee Gaza’s ceasefire and facilitate humanitarian and security assistance without entering the Palestinian enclave itself. The mission will bring together officers from Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates under US Central Command to coordinate aid deliveries and prevent renewed clashes.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan confirmed this week that Turkey will “participate in the task force” responsible for monitoring the ceasefire.
The development marks a significant shift in Turkish-Israeli relations, which were effectively frozen for years following Israel’s 2010 raid on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish aid ship bound for Gaza, that left 10 activists dead. Diplomatic ties were only restored in 2022, but relations soured again after Erdoğan accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza during its 2024–2025 military campaign and withdrew Turkey’s ambassador.
Despite that rhetoric, Turkey’s contribution to the coordination center that will operate in Israel would almost certainly require Turkish personnel be posted there as liaison staff. Ankara has not announced numbers or whether they will be uniformed officers or civilian officials.