🔗 Share this article

Plans for an multinational stabilisation force mandated by the United Nations to demilitarize Hamas in Gaza are encountering growing opposition after the UAE stated it would not join due to the absence of a well-defined legal framework.

Increasing Global Concerns

Israel have already ruled out Turkish participation, and Jordan's King Abdullah has declared that his country's forces will not join. Azerbaijan, previously considered as a possible contributor, was absent from a preparatory session in Istanbul and said it would not contribute unless a full truce was established.

Emirati officials does not yet see a defined framework for the stabilisation force and under such circumstances declines involvement, but will support all diplomatic initiatives towards resolution – and stay at the forefront of humanitarian aid.

Regional Doubts and Legal Issues

The UAE's decision, delivered by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in the UAE capital, reflects Arab reservations about the terms of a US-drafted document previously distributed to diplomats at the UN in New York. The proposal places an onus on a American-led stabilisation force to be the principal means of imposing order in Gaza after Israeli forces have left the territory.

Arab states would like greater responsibilities to be assigned to a distinct local law enforcement agency. International law would also prohibit foreign troops from entering occupied Palestine unless there was explicit Palestinian consent; otherwise, the force could be viewed as imposed under UN law, and arguably stabilising an unlawful Israeli occupation.

Local Viewpoints and Appeals for Definition

A Palestinian American co-author of the ceasefire proposal commented: “It is essential that the mission be deployed not to reinforce the illegal Israeli occupation, but to uphold international law and terminate it. The force will succeed as long as it enters the entire occupied territory, including the occupied territories, at the invitation of Palestine, and has a defined objective to end the occupation within the framework of a independent Palestinian state.”

There is no reference to the West Bank in the American proposal, or to a Palestinian state, or a peaceful resolution, a outcome that Israel rejects.

Continuing Discussions and Potential Risks

In-depth talks on the mission mandate, including its command and control, started officially on last week in New York, and appear to be protracted – potentially creating the development of a power gap in Gaza that may strengthen Hamas.

The US is suggesting that it command the force although it will not have many personnel deployed on the ground. It has already effectively assumed command of the distribution of humanitarian aid into Gaza from a recently established logistical hub based in the neighboring country.

Mission Objectives and Administrative Function

The proposed American document defines the aim of the security mission as “together with the newly trained and screened police force to help secure frontier zones, stabilise the security environment in the region by ensuring the procedure of disarming the Gaza Strip including the destruction and prevention of rebuilding the militant and hostile facilities as well as the permanent decommissioning of weapons from militant factions”.

The mission, reporting to a “board of peace” led by the former US president, and not to the United Nations, would be required to use “all necessary measures” to achieve its objectives.

Arab states including Qatar are also worried that this mandate is overly broad, and if Hamas is to lay down arms, the faction will solely do so to local counterparts, probably in the local law enforcement, at a moment that, from the militant perspective, signifies the end of occupation.

They also fear the proposed authority extends to giving the mission a governance role in the territory, a responsibility that was to be set aside for a local expert panel working in conjunction with a reformed Palestinian Authority.

Humanitarian Considerations and Financial Questions

This “transitional governance administration” in the strip would remain until “the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily finished its restructuring plan, the approval of which shall be approved to the BoP”, the proposal says. It also “emphasizes the significance” of unhindered relief in the territory, including through the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the Red Crescent.

Nonetheless, it opens the door the removal of “any organisation determined to have misused such assistance”. The phrase leaves open the board of peace barring the UN relief agency, the organization that the international court of justice has said is the lawful provider of assistance.

Global Political Efforts

France and Saudi Arabia are already pressing for a reference to a Palestinian state to be added in the document. The Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, is due in the US presidential residence on 18 November, and a Saudi foreign ministry official has said that a reference to a independent Palestine is a requirement.

The Palestinian Authority leader, Mahmoud Abbas, held talks with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on this week to discuss the authority's function.

Neither the UN nor the 15 strong UNSC are assigned a oversight function over the stabilisation force, supervising the implementation of the resolution, a aspect largely ignored by the draft text. Nothing is outlined about the funding of this stabilisation mission, which, according to the US officials, should be mostly borne by regional nations, with Saudi Arabia assuming primary responsibility.

Israel's Demands and Regional Situations

Israeli authorities is requesting formal assurances from the US that it be allowed to emulate the pattern of the Lebanese situation and reserve the authority to return to the territory if it considers demilitarization is not taking place at a level or pace it requires.

The request was put to the former US advisor, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff. The advisor was in Jerusalem on Monday to review developments on the truce and the envoy was due to arrive later the that day.

Just the remains of four of the initial 251 Israeli hostages are still not recovered.

Separately, Israeli officials has been proposing that the territory could yet be split in two with reconstruction work starting in the Israel occupied areas of the region. International officials insist that this is not part of the Trump plan.