Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Saturday that Israel, the US and the other mediators of the Gaza ceasefire deal are sharing information to disrupt any threats and that allowed them to identify a possible impending attack last weekend.
The State Department said a week ago that it had “credible reports” Hamas could violate the ceasefire with an attack on Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
“We put out a message through State Department, sent it to our mediators as well, about an impending attack, and it didn’t happen,” he told reporters en route from Israel to Qatar, where he met up with President Donald Trump for a multistop tour in Asia. “So that’s the goal here, is ultimately to identify a threat before it happens."
Rubio said multiple countries are interested in joining an international stabilization force that aims to deploy to Gaza but that they need more details about the mission and rules of engagement, The Associated Press reported.
The US could call for a UN resolution supporting the force so more nations can take part, he said, adding that the US has been talking with Qatar, Egypt and Türkiye and noting interest from Indonesia and Azerbaijan.
“Many of the countries who want to be a part of it can’t do it without that,” he said of an international mandate.
He also noted that next week the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, is expected to be the latest in a parade of US officials to travel to Israel.
Vice President JD Vance joined special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner earlier in the week in Israel in an effort to shore up the fragile ceasefire deal. Rubio arrived just as Vance was departing, meeting with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and touring a US-led coordination center monitoring the ceasefire.
Rubio touched on several other key foreign policy priorities in his remarks to reporters.
