The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) published a drone video over the weekend showing what it said were suspected Hamas operatives looting an aid truck in the southern Gaza Strip on Friday.
The incident occurred while US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, was in Israel as an official guest of IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir.
In a statement, CENTCOM said the US-led Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) — which is based in southern Israel’s Kiryat Gat — “observed suspected Hamas operatives looting an aid truck traveling as part of a humanitarian convoy delivering needed assistance from international partners to Gazans in northern Khan Younis.”
The CMCC, established under US leadership, is designed to coordinate humanitarian, logistical, and security assistance into Gaza while helping oversee the postwar stabilization phase. Roughly 200 American military personnel have been dispatched to set up the center, which currently hosts troops from several allied countries.
The CMCC was alerted to the incident through video surveillance from an American MQ-9 drone flying over Gaza as part of monitoring the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
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The New York Times reported last week, citing two Israeli military officials and a US defense official, that the US military was deploying surveillance drones over the Gaza Strip to ensure that Israel and Hamas were complying with the ceasefire. The flights are being conducted with Israel’s consent.
“Operatives attacked the driver and stole the aid and truck after moving the driver to the road’s median. The driver’s current status is unknown,” CENTCOM said.
US Drone Observes Aid Truck Looted by Hamas in Gaza
TAMPA, Fla. – On Oct. 31, the U.S.-led Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) observed suspected Hamas operatives looting an aid truck traveling as part of a humanitarian convoy delivering needed assistance from… pic.twitter.com/BFa2BPwk2a
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) November 1, 2025
Israel has said that Hamas steals supplies from deliveries by the UN and international aid groups. The UN has reported a significant decline in the looting of humanitarian aid in Gaza since the ceasefire came into place.
Just five percent of collected supplies were reportedly intercepted between October 10 and October 28, compared to more than 80% that were intercepted between May 19 and October 9, UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said during a briefing on Friday.
The UN admitted in August that almost nine out of every 10 UN trucks that entered Gaza with humanitarian aid over the preceding several months were looted before reaching their destination, according to UN statistics — either by hungry Gazans or by armed groups.
Caine, the US’s top general, arrived in Israel on Thursday night.
On Friday, Caine was greeted by an honor guard at the IDF’s Kirya headquarters, after which he held a meeting with Zamir, according to the IDF.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir meets with the US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, at the military’s headquarters in Tel Aviv, October 31, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
Additionally, Caine and Zamir held an assessment with other commanders on “regional challenges, focusing primarily on the situation in the Gaza Strip and future challenges in both nearby and distant arenas,” the military said.
Also on Friday, Caine toured the Gaza Strip from a helicopter, before visiting the CMCC at Kiryat Gat, according to Israeli military sources. At the headquarters, Caine spoke with Maj. Gen. Yaki Dolf, the IDF’s liaison to the CMCC, the sources added.
On Saturday, Caine met with Defense Minister Israel Katz.
“We discussed the close strategic and operational cooperation between the IDF and the US military, a partnership that is shaping the new reality in the Middle East,” Katz said in a statement.
US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine (left) meets with Defense Minister Israel Katz. at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, November 1, 2025. (Ariel Hermoni/Defense Ministry)
“We discussed the challenges in the near and distant arenas, foremost among them the Gaza Strip, and our commitment to the release of all the hostages, the demilitarization of Gaza, and the disarmament of Hamas,” Katz added.
Troops working to destroy tunnel in Rafah area, uncover weapons
On Saturday, the IDF said that since the start of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, troops stationed in the Rafah area have been working to demolish a large tunnel network and have also located a rocket launcher.
The Nahal Brigade, operating under the Gaza Division, has been stationed in Rafah, which is on the eastern side of the “Yellow Line” demarcating the IDF’s pullback in Gaza.
The IDF said the Nahal troops located a multiple rocket launcher with 15 barrels, along with other military equipment belonging to Hamas.
A rocket launcher found by troops in southern Gaza’s Rafah, in a handout photo issued on November 1, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
The troops “are continuing to destroy the remaining underground tunnel network in the area, which allows terrorists from the terror organizations to reside and operate against IDF troops,” the military said.
During their operations in the area, Hamas operatives have on several occasions emerged from tunnels and exchanged fire with troops, according to the IDF.
In two such incidents in recent weeks, three soldiers were killed. Hamas denied responsibility, saying communication was “cut off” with its operatives in zones under Israeli control. Israel accused Hamas in both cases of violating the ceasefire and retaliated with airstrikes.
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