Israel objects to US announcement of leaders who will help oversee next steps in Gaza

NAHARIYA, Israel (AP) — Israel’s government is objecting to the White House announcement of leaders who will play a role in overseeing next steps in Gaza as the ceasefire moves into its challenging second phase.

The rare criticism from Israel of its close ally in Washington said the Gaza executive committee “was not coordinated with Israel and is contrary to its policy,” without details. Saturday's statement also said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told the foreign ministry to contact Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The committee announced by the White House on Friday includes no Israeli official but has an Israeli businessman, billionaire Yakir Gabay. Other members announced so far include two of U.S. President Donald Trump’s closest confidants, a former British prime minister, a U.S. general and representatives of several Middle Eastern governments.

The White House has said the executive committee will carry out the vision of a Trump-led “Board of Peace,” whose members have not yet been named. The White House also announced the members of a new Palestinian committee to run Gaza’s day to day affairs, with oversight from the executive committee. The Palestinian committee met for the first time on Thursday in Cairo.

The executive committee’s members include Rubio, Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, World Bank President Ajay Banga and Trump’s Deputy National Security Adviser Robert Gabriel.

Committee members also include a diplomat from Qatar, an intelligence chief from Egypt and Turkey’s foreign minister — all countries have been ceasefire mediators — as well as a Cabinet minister for the United Arab Emirates.

Turkey has a strained relationship with Israel but good relations with Hamas and could play an important role in persuading the group to yield power and disarm. Hamas has said it will dissolve its government in Gaza once the new Palestinian committee takes office, but it has shown no sign that it will dismantle its military wing or security forces.

Netanyahu's office didn't respond Saturday to questions about its objections regarding the executive committee.

Minutes after its statement, Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir in a statement backed Netanyahu and urged him to order the military to prepare to return to war. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, another far-right Netanyahu ally, said on social media that “the countries that kept Hamas alive cannot be the ones that replace it."

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Gaza’s second-largest militant group after Hamas, in a statement Saturday also expressed dissatisfaction with the makeup of the Gaza executive committee and claimed it reflected Israeli “specifications.”

The Trump administration on Wednesday said the U.S.-drafted ceasefire plan for Gaza was now moving into its second phase, which includes the new Palestinian committee in Gaza, deployment of an international security force, disarmament of Hamas and reconstruction of the war-battered territory.

The last hostage, Ran Gvili in Gaza, was killed during the attack that sparked the war. On Saturday his parents, Talik and Itzik Gvili, said in a statement they were “deeply concerned by moves toward the rehabilitation of Gaza” while Hamas had not fulfilled its obligation to return everyone.

The ceasefire in the deadliest war ever fought between Israel and Hamas took effect on Oct. 10. The first phase focused on the return of all remaining hostages in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian detainees, along with a surge in humanitarian aid and a partial withdrawal of Israeli forces in Gaza.

The war began with the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, that killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took over 250 hostage. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed over 71,400 Palestinians, including over 460 since this ceasefire began, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts.

Associated Press writer Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut contributed.

Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Sewage overflowed parts of a makeshift tent camp for displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Displaced Palestinian Amr Al-Manaya, 35, sits by the fire with his children, Muhammad and Hala, next to their tent in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

A displaced Palestinian boy runs past empty water barrels as residents wait for a drinking water delivery in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Displaced Palestinians gather outside a tent at a temporary camp in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Displaced Palestinian Amr Al-Manaya, 35, sits by the fire with his children, next to their tent in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A “one in a million” malfunction during a live fire demonstration over Camp Pendleton last October led to a misfire that rained shrapnel on Interstate 5, striking two California Highway Patrol vehicles, a U.S. Marine Corps investigation found

An artillery shell exploded over the highway during a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Marine Corps, attended by Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Pieces of shrapnel scattered on the closed roadway and struck a CHP patrol car and a motorcycle.

In a 666-page report dated Dec. 19 and first reported on Monday, the Marines concluded that there “is no definitive answer” to why an M795 high explosive round detonated early at an altitude of about 1,480 feet (450 meters). Such a premature detonation is “beyond reasonable expectations and should not have happened, but it did,” the report says.

“It is manufactured to a tolerance of one defect in a million,” according to the report. Investigators ruled out any negligence or wrongdoing by Corps members.

Days after the malfunction, 26 California U.S. House members and the state’s two senators sent a letter to Hegseth asking who decided to shoot live artillery over the freeway and how authorities prepared for the safety risks.

The mishap deepened conflicts between President Donald Trump and California leaders including Gov. Gavin Newsom, with some Republicans initially chastising the governor for closing a 17-mile (27-kilometer) stretch of the freeway ahead of the live fire exercise. Other local leaders were exasperated by an unorthodox military display that they believe was orchestrated for the benefit of Trump administration officials.

“We’re thankful to the Marines for their thorough and precise investigation — in stark contrast to the dangerous and performative demands by JD Vance and Pete Hegseth to shoot live ammunition over a civilian area for their entertainment,” Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for Newsom’s office, said in an email Tuesday.

Newsom announced the highway closure in a statement ahead of the celebration, describing the live fire exercise as a show of force meant to intimidate Trump’s opponents, thousands of whom were demonstrating at “No Kings” protests throughout San Diego that day.

“Firing live rounds over a busy highway isn’t just wrong — it’s dangerous,” Newsom wrote at the time.

The Marine report concluded several factors could have contributed to the malfunction, including the howitzer guns being too close together when fired and the "potential presence of anomalous electromagnetic energy in the vicinity.”

The Oct. 18 demonstration at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton featured aircraft, ships, and amphibious assault vehicles to celebrate the anniversary. It involved firing artillery across the coastal freeway in a planned demonstration of 60 rounds, according to an October CHP incident report.

That location was unusual, military and public safety officials said at the time. Although live fire training is routine, it usually takes place on designated ranges within the 195-square-mile (505-square-kilometer) base north of San Diego.

The first round launched at 1:46 p.m. from M777 howitzers on a beach west of Interstate 5 toward the east, the CHP report stated. That artillery round failed to clear the roadway and detonated midflight near I-5 southbound, sending shrapnel flying toward protective service details assigned to the vice president. After that, the exercise was halted and no more munitions were fired, CalMatters reported in October.

An officer described hearing what sounded like “pebbles” falling on his CHP BMW motorcycle, and other shards struck an empty Ford patrol vehicle. The two officers who had driven the vehicle saw a 2 inch by ½-inch piece of shrapnel on the hood, which left a small dent or scratch. Photos in the incident reports show the patrol car struck by shrapnel, and an officer holding the metal shards.

In a Dec. 5 statement cited in the military report, a Marine whose name was redacted said the Secret Service wanted to close I-5 due to security concerns for a “Very Very Important Person” — the president — and its proximity to a viewing area for the demonstration. Trump ended up not attending.

Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit and Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho, contributed to this report.

FILE - The entrance to Marine Corps base Camp Pendleton is seen on Sept. 22, 2015, in Oceanside, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)