Three F-35i “Adir” fighter jets, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, landed today (Sunday) at the Nevatim Air Base.
The aircraft will be assigned to the 116th Squadron and the 140th Squadron. The Israeli Air Force insignia has been emblazoned on the aircraft.
Since the outbreak of the war, the “Adir” fleet has been operating continuously across a wide range of defensive and offensive missions in all arenas of combat.
The IDF noted that the arrival of the new aircraft marks a further enhancement of the “Adir” fleet and contributes to the Israeli Air Force’s operational capabilities.
Israel recognizes the importance of its defense partnership with the United States, stemming from a commitment to strengthening stability in the Middle East.
Board of Peace executive committee responsible for overseeing postwar management of Gaza also includes Witkoff, Kushner, representatives from UAE, Egypt and pair of prominent businessmen
US President Donald Trump speaks at a dedication ceremony for a portion of Southern Boulevard, which the Town of Palm Beach Council recently voted to rename,”President Donald J. Trump Boulevard,” January 16, 2026, at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
The White House on Friday unveiled the members of a key international panel that will oversee the postwar management of Gaza.
Notable members of the Board of Peace’s Executive Committee include Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, senior Qatari diplomat Ali Thawadi, Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad, UAE Minister of International Cooperation Reem Al-Hashimy and former UK prime minister Tony Blair.
The inclusion of prominent officials from Qatar and Turkey — two countries who have been highly critical of Israel’s prosecution of the war in Gaza — is likely to upset Jerusalem, but demonstrates their perceived utility to Trump, who has touted their abilities to coax Hamas into agreeing to a ceasefire in October.
The Executive Committee will oversee the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), the similarly new panel of Palestinian technocrats that will be responsible for providing basic services to Gazans.
It will operate under the Board of Peace, a panel of world leaders headed by Trump, which the US is aiming to unveil in the coming days. However, the Board of Peace will play a more symbolic role, with the executive committee serving as its operational arm.
Also serving on the Executive Committee will be US special envoy Steve Witkoff, top Trump aide Jared Kushner, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, Israeli-Cypriot businessman Yakir Gabay, former UN humanitarian coordinator Sigrid Kaag, and former UN envoy to the Mideast Nickolay Mladenov.
The United Nations Middle East special envoy, Nickolay Mladenov, speaks during a press conference in Jerusalem on June 25, 2020. (Menahem KAHANA / AFP)
Mladenov will also serve as the Board of Peace’s High Representative for Gaza. “In this capacity, he will act as the on-the-ground link between the Board of Peace and the NCAG,” the White House said in its statement announcing the new Gaza oversight bodies.
Mladenov “will support the Board’s oversight of all aspects of Gaza’s governance, reconstruction, and development, while ensuring coordination across civilian and security pillars,” the White House said.
The NCAG of Palestinian technocrats held its first meeting with Mladenov in Cairo on Thursday, during which Kushner and Witkoff joined virtually.
NCAG will be headed by former Palestinian Authority deputy planning minister Ali Shaath, who the White House in its Friday announcement called “a widely respected technocratic leader who will oversee the restoration of core public services, the rebuilding of civil institutions, and the stabilization of daily life in Gaza, while laying the foundation for long-term, self-sustaining governance.”
“Dr. Sha’ath brings deep experience in public administration, economic development, and international engagement, and is widely respected for his pragmatic, technocratic leadership and understanding of Gaza’s institutional realities,” the White House said.
Ali Shaath, head of the Palestinian technocratic committee for managing the Gaza Strip, arrives at a hotel in Cairo on January 16, 2026. (Mohammed Abed/AFP)
As for the yet-to-be-established International Stabilization Force, which will be tasked with providing security for the Strip and gradually phasing out the IDF, the White House announced that Central Command Special Operations Commander Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers has been appointed commander of the ISF “where he will lead security operations, support comprehensive demilitarization, and enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid and reconstruction materials.”
Jeffers previously was a co-chairman of the Cessation of Hostilities Implementation Mechanism, which has been monitoring the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire in Lebanon reached in November 2024.
US Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, appointed to oversee the implementation of the Washington-brokered ceasefire in Lebanon, is pictured during a meeting with the Lebanese parliament speaker, in Beirut, on December 5, 2024. (AFP)
The US had struggled to convince countries to contribute troops to the ISF board amid heavy speculation that Hamas will disarm and that the IDF will withdraw further from Gaza. One of the two countries Washington had publicly touted, Azerbaijan, announced earlier this month that it would not be participating.
US officials briefing reporters earlier this week insisted that they now have enough countries offering troops and that an announcement can be expected in about two weeks.
Moreover, one of the briefers appeared to confirm The Times of Israel’s reporting on the shrinking of the ISF mandate to more limited tasks such as securing borders and humanitarian aid, rather than kinetic activity to disarm Hamas.
“A lot of the work inside Gaza will be done by the local Palestinian police forces, which we think is the most important element of this plan, so we’ve been putting a lot of time into that,” the US official said.
A tent camp for displaced Palestinians stretches across the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City, January 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Still left to unveil is the Board of Peace that is slated to meet next week on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and comprise of world leaders. The Times of Israel reported last month that the US had informed interlocutors that it secured commitments from Egypt, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany to have their leaders join Trump on the Board of Peace.
“The Board of Peace will play an essential role in fulfilling all 20 points of the President’s plan, providing strategic oversight, mobilizing international resources, and ensuring accountability as Gaza transitions from conflict to peace and development,” the White House said.
“The United States remains fully committed to supporting this transitional framework, working in close partnership with Israel, key Arab nations, and the international community to achieve the objectives of [Trump’s 20-point plan for ending the Gaza war],” the White House continued. “The president calls on all parties to cooperate fully with the NCAG, the Board of Peace, and the International Stabilization Force to ensure the swift and successful implementation” of the 20-point plan.”
In addition to the Executive Committee for Gaza, the White House also unveiled an additional panel that it called the founding Executive Committee, though it is made up largely of members from the other Executive Committee and even shares the same name.
Marc Rowan, chief executive officer of Apollo Global Management speaks at the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit in Hong Kong on November 7, 2023. (Peter PARKS / AFP)
Joining Witkoff, Kushner, Blair and Rowan on this additional executive committee are US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, World Bank president Ajay Banga and Trump’s former deputy national security adviser Robert Gabriel.
The White House said that each member of this additional executive committee “will oversee a defined portfolio critical to Gaza’s stabilization and long-term success, including, but not limited to, governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding, and capital mobilization.”
The White House didn’t respond to requests for clarification regarding the significance of this additional committee and why it shares nearly the same name — and many of the same members — as the more essential Executive Committee for Gaza that will effectively be headed by Mladenov.
A source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that this additional executive committee will not play a critical role in decision-making, but the White House statement said that additional members of both committees would be announced in the coming weeks.
Greece plans to extend its territorial waters further, including potentially in the Aegean Sea, Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis said on Friday, despite Turkey’s long-standing threat of war should Athens take such a step.
The NATO allies, but historic rivals, have eased tensions in recent years but remain at odds over where their continental shelves begin and end in the Aegean – an area believed to hold significant energy potential and with implications for overflights and airspace.
Greece has already extended its territorial waters in the Ionian Sea to 12 nautical miles from six, following agreements with Italy, and it has signed a maritime delimitation deal with Egypt in the eastern Mediterranean.
But it has avoided similar moves in the Aegean, where Ankara objected sharply.
In 1995, the Turkish parliament declared a “casus belli,” or cause for war, if Greece unilaterally extended its waters beyond six nautical miles in the Aegean, a position Athens says violates international maritime law.
Answering questions in parliament on Friday, Gerapetritis said further expansion was expected.
“Today, our sovereignty in the Aegean Sea extends to six nautical miles,” Gerapetritis said. “As there was an agreement with Egypt, as there was an agreement with Italy, there will also be a (further) extension of the territorial waters.”
He didn’t specify which maritime areas could be extended.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry was not immediately available for comment.
In July, Greece took another step by unveiling the boundaries of two planned marine parks in the Ionian and Aegean seas. The Aegean park, covering 9,500 square kilometers (3,668 square miles), would initially expand around the southern Cyclades islands, further south of Turkey, according to the maps submitted by Athens. The announcement has drawn objections from Ankara.
Greece says the only issue it is prepared to discuss with Turkey is the demarcation of their maritime zones, including the continental shelf and an exclusive economic zone.
