US slated to reverse planned nix of office tasked with boosting Israel-PA security ties

The Trump administration is slated to reverse initial plans to eliminate the office of the US Security Coordinator (USSC) in Jerusalem, which helps bolster security coordination between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Congress was informed of the decision last week in a letter obtained by The Times of Israel, which stipulates that the office will be moved under the auspices of the US Embassy in Jerusalem, rather than continuing to operate independently.

The move will see the US security coordinator report to US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, rather than directly to the secretary of state and the secretary of defense. The severing of the direct reporting channel to Washington risks messages being diluted, one former US official said, adding that placing the office beneath the US embassy to Israel also risks harming the security coordinator’s legitimacy in the eyes of the PA.

The shift is part of a broader restructuring of the State Department that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been advancing, asserting that it will help cut costs and boost efficiency. The restructuring is slated to result in the closure of dozens of offices and missions in the US and abroad.

An earlier restructuring plan obtained by The Times of Israel had left the USSC office off altogether, and the office’s current chief in Jerusalem, Lieutenant General Michael Fenzel, was informed in April that his position would be cut, according to a congressional aide and a second source familiar.

News of the initial decision broke shortly thereafter, sparking efforts by several top US lawmakers and the Washington-based Israel Policy Forum aimed at urging the Trump administration to reverse the decision.

Rubio was asked about the plan when he testified before a pair of Congressional committees last month.

“The only thing that’s been discussed about [the USSC’s office in Jerusalem] is whether it should be brought under the authority of the ambassador and the embassy,” the secretary replied.

A State Department spokesperson told The Times of Israel Friday that that no final decision had been made regarding the office.

Last week’s State Department notification to Congress also revealed Rubio’s decision to close the Office of the Special Envoy for Palestinian Affairs, which was established by former US president Joe Biden and filled by Hady Amr.

The Office for the Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations, which was not filled during the Biden administration, has been renamed the Office of the Special Envoy for the Middle East, which is now headed by US President Donald Trump’s longtime ally Steve Witkoff.

Also slashed is the Office of the Special Envoy for Middle East Humanitarian Issues, which was also established during the Biden administration and focused on alleviating the humanitarian situation in Gaza. It was first headed by David Satterfield, followed by Lise Grande.

The Jerusalem USSC position last made headlines in the summer of 2022 when the Pentagon moved to downgrade the rank of the security official stationed there from a three-star general to a colonel in order to cut costs. The office’s annual budget stands at roughly $37 million.

Ultimately, though, the effort was reversed by the Biden administration following a bipartisan lobbying effort led by senators Lindsey Graham and Jon Ossoff.

The office of the USSC in Jerusalem was established in 2005 as part of the Bush administration’s Roadmap for Peace. The international team includes representatives from the United Kingdom, Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, Turkey, Poland and Bulgaria, but it is headed by the US, whose representative is also the highest-ranking official in the group. Fenzel has held the position since 2021.

The coordinator’s job focuses on reforming and strengthening the PA security forces and bolstering coordination with Israel, which the IDF has long touted as critical for stability in the region.

Supporters of maintaining the position say it has allowed the three-star rank of the US representative to gain access to high-level officials in Jerusalem and Ramallah who would not take the post as seriously if it were filled by a more junior officer.

The security coordinator has proven particularly essential during times of crisis in Israeli-Palestinian ties. When the PA announced the severing of its security coordination with Israel, amid 2017 tensions surrounding the Temple Mount, the USSC was left as the only channel through which the sides were able to communicate in order to prevent further deterioration of relations.

The USSC also facilitates the transfer of much-needed weaponry to the PA security forces, serving as an assuring presence for skeptical onlookers in Israel, whose tacit approval is needed for such handovers to go through.

A former Biden administration official told The Times of Israel that they planned for the USSC to play a critical role in preparing the PA security forces to eventually play a role in securing the Gaza Strip in place of Hamas after the war.