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Proposals for an international security mission authorized by the United Nations to disarm the militant group in Gaza are encountering growing opposition after the United Arab Emirates stated it will not join due to the absence of a clear legal framework.

Growing International Reservations

Israel have previously excluded Turkey participation, and Jordan's King Abdullah has declared that his country's troops will not participate. Azerbaijan, previously mooted as a possible contributor, did not attend a planning meeting in Istanbul and indicated it would not contribute unless a complete truce was in place.

The UAE does not yet see a defined framework for the stabilisation force and in this situation declines involvement, but backs all political initiatives towards peace – and stay at the forefront of humanitarian aid.

Arab Doubts and Juridical Issues

The UAE's announcement, delivered by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a conference in the UAE capital, reflects regional reservations about the provisions of a US-drafted resolution already distributed to delegates at the UN in NYC. The proposal assigns responsibility on a US-directed stabilisation force to be the principal means of ensuring security in the territory after Israel have withdrawn from the region.

Arab states would prefer greater duties to be assigned to a distinct Palestinian law enforcement agency. Global jurisprudence would also prohibit foreign troops from deploying into occupied Palestine unless there was clear local approval; without it, the force could be seen as imposed under UN law, and potentially reinforcing an unlawful Israeli occupation.

Local Perspectives and Appeals for Clarity

Jamal Nusseibeh of the Palestinian armistice plan commented: “It is essential that the force be sent not to stabilise the unlawful presence, but to enforce global standards and end it. The force will work as long as it enters the entire disputed land, including the occupied territories, at the invitation of Palestine, and has a defined goal to conclude the occupation within the context of a sovereign state of Palestine.”

The draft contains no reference to the occupied territories in the American proposal, or to a sovereign Palestine, or a two-state solution, a outcome that Israeli leadership opposes.

Continuing Discussions and Potential Dangers

Detailed negotiations on the stabilisation force mandate, including its command and control, started officially on Thursday in New York, and appear to be protracted – potentially creating the development of a vacuum in the strip that may empower militant factions.

The United States is suggesting that it command 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 humanitarian aid into the territory from a recently established logistical hub based in the neighboring country.

Force Objectives and Governance Role

The draft American document defines the purpose of the security mission as “along with the newly trained and vetted law enforcement to help secure border areas, secure the security environment in the region by ensuring the procedure of demilitarising the territory including the elimination and prevention of reconstructing the military terror and hostile facilities as well as the permanent decommissioning of arms from militant factions”.

The mission, reporting to a “board of peace” chaired by Donald Trump, and not to the UN, would be required to use “any required actions” to fulfill its goals.

Arab states including Qatar are also concerned that this mandate is overly broad, and if the group is to disarm, the faction will only do so to fellow Palestinians, probably in the local law enforcement, at a time that, from the Hamas viewpoint, signifies the end of Israeli presence.

They also fear the draft mandate spills into granting the stabilisation force a administrative role in Gaza, a task that was to be set aside for a local expert panel working in cooperation with a restructured Palestinian Authority.

Humanitarian Considerations and Funding Questions

This “transitional governance administration” in the strip would remain until “the local government has satisfactorily finished its reform program, the approval of which shall be acceptable to the board of peace”, the draft states. It also “emphasizes the importance” 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 removal of “any organisation determined to have misused such aid”. The wording leaves open the board of peace excluding Unrwa, the body that the global judicial body has ruled is the legal distributor of assistance.

Global Political Initiatives

French officials and Saudi Arabia are currently advocating for a reference to a Palestinian state to be included in the resolution. The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, is due in the White House on 18 November, and Manal Radwan has said that a reference to a independent Palestine is a requirement.

The Palestinian Authority leader, Mahmoud Abbas, met the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on this week to review the authority's function.

Neither the United Nations nor the 15 strong security council are assigned a oversight function over the stabilisation force, monitoring the implementation of the resolution, a point largely overlooked by the draft text. No details is outlined about the financing of this stabilisation mission, which, as per the US officials, should be mostly covered by regional nations, with Saudi Arabia assuming primary responsibility.

Israel's Requests and Regional Developments

Israeli authorities is requesting formal assurances from the US that it be permitted to emulate the model of the Lebanese situation and reserve the right to return to the territory if it considers demilitarization is not occurring at a level or speed it requires.

The request was put to Jared Kushner, the ex-president's relative, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in Jerusalem on this week to review progress on the ceasefire and Witkoff was due to appear later the that day.

Only the remains of a small number of the original hundreds of Israeli hostages are still not recovered.

Independently, Israeli officials has been proposing that the territory could still be divided in two with reconstruction work beginning in the Israeli-controlled areas of the strip. International officials insist that this is no part of the former US administration's proposal.