WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT GAZA’S INTERNATIONAL STABILISATION FORCE

Sat 08 November 2025:

The creation of an International Stabilisation Force (ISF) for the war-battered Palestinian territory was outlined in the US-brokered ceasefire.

While several countries have shown interest in contributing to the ISF, there are still key details to be ironed out, including whether the force will operate under a UN mandate, what its responsibilities are, and which countries will contribute troops on the ground.

The United States circulated a UN draft resolution to 15 Security Council members on Wednesday, and said it has support from Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, and the United Arab Emirates.

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Here is what the draft resolution, viewed by Al Jazeera, says:

The ISF could “use all necessary measures” to carry out its security mandate.
It would be authorised to protect civilians and humanitarian aid operations, work to secure border areas with Israel and Egypt, and assist a “newly trained and vetted Palestinian police force”.
It would stabilise Gaza by “ensuring the process of demilitarising the Gaza Strip, including the destruction and prevention of rebuilding of the military, terror, and offensive infrastructure, as well as the permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state armed groups”.

An unnamed American official told the Reuters news agency the draft resolution gives the ISF authority to disarm Hamas, but the US is still expecting the Palestinian group to “live up to its end of the agreement” and surrender its weapons.

United States President Donald Trump has said he expects a US-coordinated international stabilisation force to be on the ground in Gaza “very soon” as part of his post-war plan for the enclave, which is still suffering a full-blown humanitarian crisis amid continued Israeli bombing.

“It’s going to be very soon. And Gaza is working out very well,” said the president on Thursday, adding that an alliance of “very powerful countries” had volunteered to intervene if any problems arose with the Palestinian armed group Hamas, which has not yet confirmed it will disarm.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that any stabilisation force must have “full international legitimacy” to support Palestinians in Gaza.

A senior US government official told the Reuters news agency that negotiations were expected to start on Thursday, following his country’s circulation of the draft resolution to 10 elected UNSC members and several regional partners this week.

The resolution, which was reportedly seen by Egypt, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye, would permit a stabilisation force of 20,000 troops to “use all necessary measures” to carry out its mandate, meaning it will be allowed to deploy force, according to Reuters.

Israeli officials – including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar – are adamant that their country will not accept a Turkish presence in Gaza.

Israel appears to have its own narrative on the stabilisation force. During a joint news conference with Trump back in September, Netanyahu told reporters that “Israel will retain security responsibility, including a security perimeter, for the foreseeable future” in Gaza.

The head of the US Central Command, which is responsible for the Middle East, said last month during a visit to Gaza that no US troops would be deployed there.

Hamas has not said whether it will demilitarise, a key tenet of Trump’s 20-point plan, but part of the stabilisation force’s task would be to destroy its capacities and “offensive infrastructure” and to prevent it from rebuilding.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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