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Proposals for an international security mission mandated by the UN to disarm the militant group in the Gaza Strip are encountering increasing opposition after the United Arab Emirates stated it will not join due to the lack of a clear legal structure.

Growing Global Concerns

Israeli authorities have previously excluded Turkish involvement, and Jordan's King Abdullah has declared that Jordanian forces will not participate. Azerbaijan, once considered as a possible participant, was absent from a planning session in Turkey and said it would not contribute unless a complete truce was established.

Emirati officials lacks clarity on a clear structure for the stabilisation mission and in this situation declines involvement, but backs all political initiatives towards resolution – and stay at the forefront of humanitarian aid.

Arab Skepticism and Legal Issues

The Emirati decision, made by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in the UAE capital, reflects Arab reservations about the provisions of a US-drafted document already distributed to diplomats at the UN in NYC. The proposal places an onus on a US-directed security mission to be the principal means of ensuring security in Gaza after Israeli forces have withdrawn from the territory.

Arab states would like expanded responsibilities to be given to a separate local law enforcement agency. International law would also forbid external forces from deploying into contested Palestine unless there was clear local approval; without it, the force could be seen as coercive under international statutes, and potentially reinforcing an illegal Israeli occupation.

Local Perspectives and Calls for Definition

A Palestinian American co-author of the Palestinian armistice plan said: “It is critical that the mission be sent not to reinforce the unlawful presence, but to enforce international law and terminate it. The force will work as long as it enters the whole occupied territory, including the West Bank, at the invitation of the Palestinian authorities, and has a clear goal to end the presence within the framework of a sovereign Palestinian state.”

There is no reference to the West Bank in the US draft resolution, or to a sovereign Palestine, or a peaceful resolution, a outcome that Israel opposes.

Continuing Negotiations and Potential Risks

In-depth talks on the mission mandate, including its leadership structure, began formally on last week in the UN headquarters, and look likely to be lengthy – potentially creating the development of a vacuum in Gaza that may strengthen Hamas.

The United States is suggesting that it command the force although it will not have many troops involved on the terrain. It has previously in effect assumed command of the distribution of relief supplies into Gaza from a new civil military coordination centre based in the neighboring country.

Mission Objectives and Governance Function

The proposed American document defines the aim of the security mission as “together with the newly trained and vetted law enforcement to help secure frontier zones, stabilise the security environment in Gaza by guaranteeing the procedure of demilitarising the territory including the elimination and prevention of reconstructing the militant and offensive infrastructure as well as the permanent decommissioning of arms from non-state armed groups”.

The mission, answerable to a “peace council” led by the former US president, and not to the UN, would be mandated to use “all necessary measures” to achieve its goals.

Regional powers including Qatari officials are also concerned that this mandate is overly broad, and if the group is to lay down arms, the faction will only do so to local counterparts, probably in the local law enforcement, at a moment that, from the militant perspective, marks the conclusion of occupation.

They also worry the proposed authority extends to giving the stabilisation force a administrative function in Gaza, a task that was to be set aside for a Palestinian expert panel working in conjunction with a restructured local government.

Aid Considerations and Financial Questions

This “transitional governance administration” in Gaza would remain until “the local government has adequately completed its restructuring plan, the satisfaction of which shall be acceptable to the board of peace”, the draft states. It also “emphasizes the significance” of full humanitarian aid in the territory, including through the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the Red Crescent.

Nonetheless, it allows for the exclusion of “any group determined to have improperly used such aid”. The wording leaves open the council barring the UN relief agency, the body that the global judicial body has ruled is the lawful provider of assistance.

Global Political Efforts

French officials and Saudi Arabia are currently pressing for a reference to a sovereign Palestine to be added in the document. The Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, is scheduled in the US presidential residence on the specified date, and a Saudi foreign ministry official has said that a reference to a Palestinian state is a requirement.

The Palestinian Authority leader, Mahmoud Abbas, met the French leader, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on this week to review the PA role.

Not the UN nor the 15-member security council are assigned a supervisory function over the stabilisation force, monitoring the implementation of the proposal, a point largely ignored by the proposed document. Nothing is outlined about the funding of this security operation, which, as per the Americans, should be mostly borne by regional nations, with the Kingdom assuming primary responsibility.

Israeli Demands and Local Situations

Israel is seeking formal assurances from the US that it be permitted to follow the model of Lebanon and retain the right to re-enter the territory if it considers demilitarization is not occurring at a scale or speed it requires.

The Israeli proposal was presented to the former US advisor, Donald Trump’s relative, and the American diplomat, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in Jerusalem on this week to review developments on the ceasefire and the envoy was due to arrive subsequently the that day.

Just the bodies of a small number of the original 251 Israeli hostages remain unreturned.

Separately, Israel has been proposing that the territory could still be split in two parts with rebuilding efforts starting in the Israeli-controlled parts of the region. International officials maintain that this is no part of the Trump plan.