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Plans for an international stabilisation force mandated by the UN to demilitarize the militant group in the Gaza Strip are encountering increasing opposition after the United Arab Emirates announced it would not take part due to the absence of a well-defined legal framework.

Increasing Global Concerns

Israeli authorities have previously ruled out Turkey involvement, and the Jordanian King Abdullah has stated that Jordanian forces will not join. The Azerbaijani government, previously considered as a potential participant, was absent from a preparatory meeting in Turkey and said it would not contribute unless a full truce was established.

The UAE does not yet see a defined framework for the stabilisation force and under such circumstances will not participate, but will support all political initiatives towards resolution – and remain at the vanguard of humanitarian aid.

Regional Skepticism and Legal Concerns

The Emirati decision, made by senior envoy Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in Abu Dhabi, reflects Arab reservations about the provisions of a American-proposed document previously circulated to delegates at the UN in New York. The proposal places an onus on a US-directed security mission to be the principal means of imposing security in the territory after Israeli forces have left the territory.

Regional governments would prefer expanded responsibilities to be assigned to a distinct Palestinian civilian police force. Global jurisprudence would also forbid foreign troops from deploying into occupied Palestine unless there was explicit Palestinian consent; otherwise, the mission could be viewed as imposed under UN law, and arguably reinforcing an unlawful Israeli occupation.

Local Perspectives and Appeals for Definition

Jamal Nusseibeh of the Palestinian armistice plan said: “It is essential that the mission be sent not to reinforce the unlawful presence, but to uphold global standards and end it. The force will succeed as long as it operates in the entire occupied territory, including the occupied territories, at the request of Palestine, and has a clear objective to conclude the occupation within the framework of a independent Palestinian state.”

There is no reference to the occupied territories in the US draft resolution, or to a Palestinian state, or a two-state solution, a prospect that Israeli leadership rejects.

Continuing Negotiations and Possible Risks

Detailed negotiations on the stabilisation force mandate, including its command and control, began formally on Thursday in New York, and look likely to be protracted – potentially creating the emergence of a power gap in the strip that may empower Hamas.

The United States is proposing that it lead the force although it will not have a large number of personnel deployed on the terrain. It has already effectively assumed command of the delivery of relief supplies into the territory from a recently established logistical hub based in the neighboring country.

Force Mandate and Administrative Role

The draft US resolution defines the purpose of the security mission as “together with the recently prepared and screened police force to help secure border areas, stabilise the security environment in Gaza by guaranteeing the process of disarming the territory including the destruction and prevention of rebuilding the military terror and hostile facilities as well as the lasting removal of arms from non-state armed groups”.

The mission, reporting to a “board of peace” chaired by the former US president, and not to the UN, would be required to use “any required actions” to achieve its objectives.

Arab states including Qatar are also worried that this authority is overly broad, and if Hamas is to disarm, the group will solely do so to local counterparts, likely in the local law enforcement, at a time that, from the Hamas viewpoint, signifies the conclusion of occupation.

They also fear the draft mandate extends to giving the mission a administrative role in the territory, a task that was to be set aside for a local technocratic committee working in conjunction with a restructured Palestinian Authority.

Humanitarian Aspects and Funding Issues

This “transitional governance administration” in Gaza would remain until “the local government has adequately finished its reform program, the satisfaction of which shall be approved to the BoP”, the draft says. It also “emphasizes the significance” of full 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 group found to have misused such assistance”. The phrase leaves open the board of peace barring the UN relief agency, the body that the international court of justice has said is the legal provider of assistance.

International Political Initiatives

French officials and Saudi Arabia are currently advocating for a mention to a Palestinian state to be added in the resolution. The Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, is due in the US presidential residence on 18 November, and a Saudi foreign ministry official has stated that a reference to a independent Palestine is a requirement.

The PA chair, Mahmoud Abbas, held talks with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on Monday to discuss the PA role.

Not the United Nations nor the 15 strong UNSC are assigned a supervisory role over the mission, monitoring the execution of the proposal, a aspect largely overlooked by the draft text. No details is outlined about the financing of this security operation, which, as per the US officials, should be largely covered by Gulf states, with the Kingdom assuming primary responsibility.

Israeli Demands and Local Developments

Israel is requesting written guarantees from the United States that it be allowed to follow the model of Lebanon and reserve the authority to return to Gaza if it believes demilitarization is not occurring at a scale or speed it requires.

The Israeli proposal was presented to Jared Kushner, the ex-president's son-in-law, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in Jerusalem on Monday to review progress on the ceasefire and the envoy was scheduled to arrive later the that day.

Just the bodies of a small number of the original hundreds of Israeli hostages are still unreturned.

Independently, Israeli officials has been suggesting that the territory could still be split in two with reconstruction work beginning in the Israeli-controlled parts of the strip. International officials maintain that this is not part of the Trump plan.