Several top U.S. officials are in Israel to shore up the Gaza ceasefire and attempt to bring about a permanent end to the war. They acknowledge the next phase poses serious challenges.

A collective funeral ceremony was held Wednesday in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, for 54 unidentified Palestinians whose bodies were returned from Israel, the Palestinian Civil Defense (PCD) reported.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — U.S. Vice President JD Vance arrived in Israel on Tuesday to shore up the fragile U.S.-brokered ceasefire in Gaza that has teetered over the past few days following a burst of deadly violence and questions over how to move forward with the plan for cementing a long-term peace.

Vice President JD Vance visits the Church of the Holy Sepulchre during his trip to Israel, calling it an "amazing blessing" and a "very special moment."

The United Nations’ top court issued a legal opinion Wednesday stating that Israel, as an occupying power, is obligated to work with UN agencies to facilitate humanitarian aid in Gaza, a rebuke of the blockade it imposed on the Palestinian enclave earlier this year.

The vice president was the latest U.S. official to meet with the Israeli PM since a flare-up in violence threatened the truce. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was set to follow Friday.

President Donald Trump is suggesting he could call on Israel to release imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, the most popular and potentially unifying Palestinian leader, as the United States aims to fill a leadership vacuum in postwar Gaza.

A U.S. citizen remains in an Israeli prison after a ceasefire agreement secured the release of almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.