UN Security Council set to vote on international force for Gaza
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The Gaza Strip has been largely reduced to rubble after two years of fighting.
PHOTO: EPA
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NEW YORK – The UN Security Council is set to vote on Nov 17 on a US-drafted resolution bolstering US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan
The draft, which has been revised several times as a result of high-stakes negotiations, “endorses” the plan, which allowed for a fragile ceasefire
The Gaza Strip has been largely reduced to rubble after two years of fighting, sparked by Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023
The latest version of the text authorises the creation of an International Stabilisation Force (ISF) that will work with Israel and Egypt and newly trained Palestinian police to help secure border areas and demilitarise Gaza.
The ISF also will work on the “permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state armed groups”, protecting civilians and securing humanitarian aid corridors.
In addition, it will authorise the formation of a “Board of Peace”, a transitional governing body for Gaza – which Mr Trump will theoretically chair – with a mandate running until the end of 2027.
Unlike previous drafts, the latest version mentions a possible future Palestinian state.
Once the Palestinian Authority has carried out requested reforms and the rebuilding of Gaza is under way, “the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood”, the draft says.
That eventuality has been firmly rejected by Israel.
“Our opposition to a Palestinian state on any territory has not changed,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a Cabinet meeting on Nov 16.
The UN Security Council vote is set at 5pm on Nov 17 (6am on Nov 18, Singapore time).
Russian objections
Veto-wielding Russia has circulated a competing draft, saying the US document does not go far enough towards backing the creation of a Palestinian state.
Moscow’s text asks the Security Council to express its “unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution”.
It does not authorise a Board of Peace or the deployment of an international force for the time being, instead asking UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to offer “options” on those issues.
The United States has intensified its campaign to earn support for its resolution, hitting out at “attempts to sow discord” among Security Council members.
“Any refusal to back this resolution is a vote either for the continued reign of Hamas terrorists or for the return to war with Israel, condemning the region and its people to perpetual conflict,” US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz wrote in The Washington Post.
The US has made known that it has the backing of several Arab and Muslim-majority nations, publishing a joint statement of support for the text signed by Qatar, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Jordan and Turkey.
Several diplomats said despite Russian criticism and hesitance on the part of other member states, they expect the US draft to be adopted.
“The Russians know that while a lot of Council members will go along with the US plans, they share concerns about the substance of the US text and the way Washington has tried to fast-track it through New York,” Mr Richard Gowan, of the International Crisis Group, said.
Tents of displaced Palestinians at a makeshift camp are soaked on a rainy day in southern Gaza.
PHOTO: EPA
He, however, said he doubts that Moscow will use its veto on a resolution backed by Arab nations.
“I think it is more likely that China and Russia will abstain, register their scepticism about the plan and then sit back and watch the US struggle to put it into action,” Mr Gowan said. AFP
