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Plans for an international security mission mandated by the UN to demilitarize the militant group in Gaza are facing growing opposition after the United Arab Emirates announced it will not take part due to the lack of a well-defined legal framework.

Growing International Concerns

Israel have already excluded Turkish participation, and Jordan's King Abdullah has declared that Jordanian forces will not participate. Azerbaijan, previously mooted as a possible contributor, was absent from a preparatory session in Turkey and indicated it would not contribute unless a complete truce was established.

Emirati officials does not yet see a clear structure for the stability force and in this situation declines involvement, but will support all political efforts towards resolution – and stay at the vanguard of humanitarian aid.

Regional Skepticism and Legal Issues

The Emirati announcement, made by senior envoy Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in the UAE capital, highlights Arab reservations about the provisions of a American-proposed resolution already circulated to diplomats at the UN in NYC. The proposal places an onus on a US-directed security mission to be the primary means of ensuring order in Gaza after Israel have withdrawn from the territory.

Regional governments would like greater responsibilities to be assigned to a separate Palestinian law enforcement agency. International law would also prohibit external forces from entering occupied Palestinian territories unless there was explicit Palestinian consent; without it, the force could be seen as imposed under UN law, and potentially stabilising an unlawful presence.

Palestinian Viewpoints and Appeals for Definition

A Palestinian American co-author of the ceasefire proposal said: “It is critical that the mission be deployed not to stabilise the illegal presence, but to enforce global standards and end it. The force will succeed as long as it operates in the whole disputed land, including the West Bank, at the invitation of the Palestinian authorities, and has a clear goal to conclude the presence within the framework of a sovereign state of Palestine.”

There is no reference 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

In-depth talks on the mission authority, including its leadership structure, began formally on Thursday in the UN headquarters, and look likely to be protracted – risking the development of a vacuum in Gaza that may strengthen Hamas.

The United States is suggesting that it lead the force although it will not have many personnel involved on the ground. It has previously effectively assumed command of the delivery of humanitarian aid into the territory from a new civil military coordination centre based in the neighboring country.

Force Objectives and Administrative Function

The draft US resolution defines the purpose of the stabilisation force as “together with the recently prepared and vetted police force to assist in protecting frontier zones, stabilise the safety situation in the region by guaranteeing the process of disarming the territory including the elimination and blocking of reconstructing the military terror and offensive infrastructure as well as the lasting decommissioning of weapons from militant factions”.

The mission, reporting to a “board of peace” chaired by the former US president, and not to the UN, would be required to use “any required actions” to fulfill its objectives.

Arab states including Qatar are also worried that this mandate is too expansive, and if the group is to disarm, the faction will solely do so to fellow Palestinians, probably in the civilian police force, at a time that, from the Hamas perspective, signifies the conclusion of Israeli presence.

They also fear the proposed authority extends to granting the mission a governance role in the territory, a responsibility that was to be reserved for a local expert panel working in cooperation with a restructured Palestinian Authority.

Aid Aspects and Financial Issues

This “transitional governance administration” in Gaza would remain until “the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily completed its restructuring plan, the approval of which shall be acceptable to the BoP”, the proposal says. It also “underscores the importance” of unhindered humanitarian aid in the territory, including through the United Nations, the ICRC, and the humanitarian organizations.

However, it opens the door the exclusion of “any organisation determined to have improperly used such assistance”. The wording leaves open the board of peace excluding the UN relief agency, the body that the global judicial body has said is the legal provider of assistance.

Global Political Efforts

French officials and Saudi Arabia are currently advocating for a mention to a Palestinian state to be included in the document. The Saudi leader, 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 PA chair, Mahmoud Abbas, held talks with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on this week to discuss the PA role.

Not the United Nations nor the 15 strong UNSC are assigned a supervisory role over the stabilisation force, supervising the execution of the resolution, a aspect largely overlooked by the draft text. No details is outlined about the funding of this security operation, which, as per the US officials, should be mostly covered by Gulf states, with Saudi Arabia assuming primary responsibility.

Israeli Requests and Regional Developments

Israeli authorities is seeking formal assurances from the US that it be permitted to emulate the model of Lebanon and reserve the right to re-enter the territory if it believes demilitarization is not taking place at a level or speed it requires.

The request was presented to the former US advisor, the ex-president's relative, and the American diplomat, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in the Israeli capital on this week to discuss progress on the ceasefire and Witkoff was scheduled to arrive subsequently the that day.

Only the remains of a small number of the initial hundreds of Israeli hostages remain unreturned.

Separately, Israeli officials has been proposing that the territory could still be split in two parts with reconstruction work starting in the Israel occupied parts of the region. International officials insist that this is not part of the Trump plan.