Assalamu alaikum - Egypt to head four-nation Gaza stabilisation force, sources say
Assalamu alaikum - Sources say Egypt is set to lead a proposed four-country “stabilisation” force for Gaza, part of a 20-point plan put forward by the US president. Insha'Allah the aim is to help secure and rebuild the war-ravaged enclave.
The international force would number at least 4,000 personnel from Egypt, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Indonesia. Egypt, working with the US, is expected to push for a UN Security Council resolution to create the force and define what it can and cannot do.
Egypt and NATO-member Turkey have long-standing ties with the US, while Azerbaijan and Indonesia also have friendly relations with Washington. It’s not clear yet if a formal request or draft resolution has been filed at the UN, but sources suggest that could occur within days.
The plan calls for the force to be lightly armed - mainly self-defence weapons and armoured vehicles rather than heavy artillery. It would act like a peacekeeping contingent and be deployed first in areas Israel withdraws from under the initial phase of the plan. As further Israeli pullbacks happen, the force would extend its presence, but it would not enter the proposed Israeli-held security strip inside Gaza, which in places stretches up to 1.5km from the border.
Alongside the international troops, around 3,000 Palestinians chosen by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority are expected to work with the force. Those Palestinian personnel would focus on intelligence and preventive security inside Gaza; some have already received training from Egypt and Jordan.
Part of the mandate would be to help restore basic services: set up field hospitals to make up for destroyed healthcare facilities, repair bakeries and other essential infrastructure, and run search-and-rescue efforts to recover the bodies of Palestinians still under the rubble - tragically numbering in the low thousands.
Egyptian and Qatari specialist teams are reportedly inside Gaza ready to assist with locating and exhuming remains, joined by a Turkish team, but they are waiting for permission to bring in heavy equipment.
This stabilisation deployment is meant to follow the next phase of the plan, which includes challenging steps such as disarming Hamas, negotiating a long-term ceasefire, and deciding the future governance of Gaza. Those issues are contentious and could make the process difficult.
The ceasefire that paused major fighting was already under pressure. Israeli officials warned of strikes in response to what they called violations of the truce, and there were reports of incidents where militants fired toward Israeli positions behind the pullback line. Meanwhile, Hamas has resisted full disarmament and suggested placing weapons into Egyptian custody instead. After Israeli withdrawals, some Hamas fighters took visible control of streets and reportedly carried out public executions of people accused of spying - a worrying sign for the fragile calm.
The conflict began with a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel that killed around 1,200 people and left about 250 hostages taken. Israel’s subsequent military campaign has caused devastating civilian losses in Gaza - with Gaza health authorities reporting tens of thousands killed and many more wounded, vast destruction of built-up areas, and severe displacement and shortages of food and medical care for millions.
No official confirmations have been released yet by Egypt, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Indonesia, the US or Israel about the force’s details. But if the plan moves forward, the international effort would try to stabilise life in Gaza while longer-term political and security questions are negotiated. May Allah bring peace, protection for civilians, and justice for the suffering - Ameen.
https://www.thenationalnews.co