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Proposals for an multinational stabilisation force authorized by the United Nations to demilitarize the militant group in Gaza are encountering increasing resistance after the United Arab Emirates announced it will not take part due to the lack of a clear legal structure.

Increasing Global Reservations

Israeli authorities have previously ruled out Turkey involvement, and the Jordanian King Abdullah has declared that his country's troops will not participate. The Azerbaijani government, previously considered as a possible participant, was absent from a planning meeting in Istanbul and indicated it would not contribute unless a full ceasefire was established.

The UAE lacks clarity on a clear framework for the stabilisation mission and under such circumstances will not participate, but backs all political initiatives towards resolution – and remain at the vanguard of humanitarian aid.

Regional Skepticism and Legal Concerns

The Emirati decision, delivered by senior envoy Dr Anwar Gargash at a conference in the UAE capital, highlights regional doubts about the provisions of a American-proposed document previously circulated to delegates at the UN in NYC. The draft places an onus on a US-directed stabilisation force to be the principal means of imposing order in Gaza after Israeli forces have left the territory.

Regional governments would prefer expanded responsibilities to be given to a distinct Palestinian law enforcement agency. Global jurisprudence would also forbid foreign troops from deploying into occupied Palestinian territories unless there was explicit Palestinian consent; otherwise, the force could be seen as coercive under UN law, and arguably stabilising an illegal Israeli occupation.

Palestinian Viewpoints and Appeals for Definition

Jamal Nusseibeh of the Palestinian armistice plan said: “It is critical that the mission be sent not to reinforce the unlawful presence, but to uphold international law and terminate it. The mission will work as long as it enters the entire occupied territory, including the occupied territories, at the invitation of the Palestinian authorities, and has a defined goal to end the presence within the framework of a independent Palestinian state.”

The draft contains no mention to the West Bank in the American proposal, or to a Palestinian state, or a peaceful resolution, a outcome that Israel opposes.

Ongoing Discussions and Potential Dangers

Detailed talks on the stabilisation force authority, including its command and control, started formally on last week in the UN headquarters, and appear to be protracted – risking the emergence of a power gap in Gaza that may empower militant factions.

The United States is suggesting that it lead the mission although it will not have a large number of troops deployed on the terrain. It has already effectively taken control of the distribution of humanitarian aid into Gaza from a recently established logistical hub based in the neighboring country.

Force Objectives and Administrative Role

The proposed American document outlines the purpose of the stabilisation force as “together with the newly trained and vetted police force to assist in protecting frontier zones, stabilise the security environment in Gaza by guaranteeing the procedure of demilitarising the territory including the destruction and prevention of rebuilding the military terror and offensive infrastructure as well as the permanent removal 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.

Regional powers including Qatar are also concerned that this mandate is too expansive, and if Hamas is to disarm, the faction will solely do so to fellow Palestinians, likely in the local law enforcement, at a moment that, from the Hamas perspective, marks the conclusion of occupation.

They also fear the draft mandate extends to giving the stabilisation force a governance function in the territory, a task that was to be reserved for a local technocratic committee working in conjunction with a reformed Palestinian Authority.

Aid Aspects and Funding Issues

This “transitional governance administration” in Gaza would stay until “the local government has adequately completed its reform program, the satisfaction of which shall be acceptable to the board of peace”, the draft states. It also “underscores the importance” of full relief in Gaza, including through the UN, the ICRC, and the humanitarian organizations.

Nonetheless, it allows for the removal of “any group found to have misused such assistance”. The phrase permits the council excluding Unrwa, the body that the global judicial body has said is the lawful distributor of aid.

Global Diplomatic Initiatives

French officials and Saudi Arabia are currently advocating for a mention 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 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 this week to discuss the authority's function.

Neither the United Nations nor the 15-member UNSC are given a oversight function over the stabilisation force, supervising the execution of the proposal, a point mostly overlooked by the proposed document. Nothing is outlined about the funding of this stabilisation mission, which, as per the US officials, should be largely borne by regional nations, with Saudi Arabia taking the lead.

Israeli Demands and Regional Developments

Israeli authorities is requesting written guarantees from the US that it be permitted to emulate the pattern of the Lebanese situation and retain the right to re-enter Gaza if it believes disarmament is not occurring at a scale or speed it demands.

The request was put to Jared Kushner, the ex-president's relative, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff. The advisor was in the Israeli capital on Monday to discuss developments on the truce and the envoy was scheduled 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 suggesting that the Gaza Strip could still be split in two parts with rebuilding efforts starting in the Israel occupied parts of the strip. International officials insist that this is not part of the former US administration's proposal.