US Vice-President JD Vance has arrived in Israel as part of the Trump administration's efforts to strengthen the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
He is expected to push the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to start negotiations on long-term issues for a permanent end to the war with Hamas.
The two special US envoys who helped negotiate the deal, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, also held talks with Netanyahu on Monday.
Their visits come after a flare-up of violence on Sunday that threatened to derail the 12-day-old truce. Israel said a Hamas attack killed two soldiers, triggering Israeli air strikes which killed dozens of Palestinians.
US President Donald Trump insisted on Monday that the ceasefire was still on track but also warned Hamas that it would be eradicated if it violated the deal.
Trump is said to have dispatched his deputy and envoys to Israel to keep up momentum and push for the start of talks on the second critical phase of his 20-point Gaza peace plan, which would involve setting up an interim government, deploying an international force, withdrawing Israeli troops, and the disarmament of Hamas.
Vance, Witkoff, and Kushner are attempting to ensure the ceasefire deal, based on the first phase of the peace plan, does not collapse first.
Netanyahu had previously stated in parliament that he would discuss security challenges and political opportunities with Vance during his visit.
He also noted that the Israeli military had responded to perceived breaches of the ceasefire, asserting that you make peace with the strong, not the weak.
Recent violence had resulted in at least 45 Palestinians being killed as Israeli forces responded to an anti-tank missile attack that claimed the lives of two soldiers.
Hamas's chief negotiator has reiterated the group's commitment to the ceasefire, aiming to recover the bodies of deceased hostages while expressing the challenges they face.
