The U.S. government is moving forward with plans to construct a massive new military base on the Israeli border with Gaza—a move that sharply contradicts promises to end American entanglements in the Middle East and is raising alarm among critics focused on U.S. sovereignty and security.
According to Israeli outlet Shomrim, cited by Responsible Statecraft’s Connor Echols, the proposed base would cost a staggering $500 million and house thousands of U.S. troops, significantly escalating the American military presence inside Israel.
The official narrative, pushed by Pentagon officials and echoed in diplomatic circles, is that the base will someday serve an international “peacekeeping” force linked to Gaza’s postwar stabilization. However, construction would dramatically expand the U.S. footprint near Gaza and, according to reporting, may even be coordinated primarily out of Washington rather than the United Nations.
Critics point out that President Donald Trump ran and won in 2016 on pledges to “end the forever wars in the Middle East.” Annelle Sheline of the Quincy Institute told Responsible Statecraft, “Building a U.S. military base in historic Palestine is antithetical to the America First foreign policy he was elected to implement.” She warned a permanent presence would “endanger U.S. troops and increase the possibility that the U.S. will take over Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine, potentially bogging us down in the region indefinitely.”
The Pentagon continues to deny the specifics, telling Responsible Statecraft, “U.S. military personnel are currently working with international military partners to develop potential options for basing international troops that are part of a future International Stabilization Force. To be clear, no U.S. troops will be deployed into Gaza. Any reporting to the contrary is false.”
Yet groundwork for the project is already underway. American officials have begun scouting locations, and Israel’s own military sources tell the Jerusalem Post they know little about the effort—fueling speculation that the ring-fencing of Gaza with a new U.S. base could serve American strategic interests far more than regional stability.
According to The Atlantic, parallel “Alternate Safe Communities”—massive housing projects for up to 25,000 Palestinians each—may be constructed on the Israeli side, gated and vetted by Israel’s Shin Bet intelligence. Contracts have reportedly been awarded, while the U.S. also ramps up its presence at a “coordination center” just outside Gaza.
In deeply critical on-air remarks, independent journalist Kim Iversen called out the project’s underlying motives: “There is a plan in the works right now—The United States, under the direction of Donald Trump…wants to construct a major base to send a message, not just to Gaza but to the entire region, that the U.S. military is here to stay.” She warned viewers, “This is a permanent occupation and a total betrayal of everything we were promised about getting out of Middle Eastern fights.”
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Pentagon Plans HUGE Gaza Border Base — This Is INSANE! – The Kim Iversen Show
Iversen added, “The establishment is lying to you about the purpose of this base. They want you to believe it’s about international peacekeeping, but the reality is this base would allow America to control the narrative and movement in and out of Gaza, and keep boots on the ground for as long as Washington wants.”
Reports indicate the multinational “peace force” would not fall under the usual U.N. chain of command, but instead be governed by a “Board of Peace” shaped by U.S. leadership, according to Jewish Insider—a further sign of Washington’s unprecedented direct control.
For America First advocates and anyone tired of endless foreign wars, the prospect of a permanent $500 million U.S. base on historic Palestinian land looks less like peacekeeping and more like a blank check to empire.
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