U.S. proposes that UN authorize Gaza stabilization force

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UNITED NATIONS — The United States has circulated the draft text of a U.N. Security Council resolution that would mandate an international stabilization force in the Gaza Strip for at least two years, marking the next step in President Donald Trump's plan to end the two-year war between Israel and Hamas.

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The draft, confirmed to The Associated Press by two U.S. officials, is an early template for what is likely to be extensive negotiations between members of the 15-member council and other international partners. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said the draft was being discussed and changed based on those discussions.

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Arab and other countries that have expressed interest in participating in the stabilization force have indicated that support for the UN plan is needed to persuade them to contribute troops.

“We believe that whatever entity is created in the Gaza Strip must have the legitimacy of a Security Council mandate,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters in Doha.

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The draft was circulated on Tuesday afternoon and was prepared as a starting point for reaching a consensus that would give the stabilization forces and participating countries an international mandate.

China and Russia – the council's two permanent members – will likely pose the biggest opposition to the US as they try to push through the resolution without either country vetoing it.

The draft calls on forces to ensure “the process of demilitarization of the Gaza Strip” and “the permanent decommissioning of the weapons of non-state armed groups.” A big question in Trump's 20-step plan for a ceasefire and restoration of territory is how to disarm Hamas, which has not fully accepted the step.

The project would give countries participating in the stabilization force a broad mandate to provide security in Gaza until the end of 2027, working with a yet-to-be-established “Peace Council” that would temporarily govern the territory. The draft calls for forces to closely consult and cooperate with Egypt and Israel.

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The text also states that stabilization troops will help secure border areas along with Palestinian police, whom they have trained and vetted, and coordinate with other countries to ensure the flow of humanitarian aid. It also stresses the “full resumption” of aid to Gaza from the United Nations and the Red Cross and Red Crescent and ensuring that essential supplies are not diverted.

Hamish Falconer, Britain's minister for the Middle East and North Africa, recently told the AP that Britain is focusing on securing a fragile ceasefire and that aid continues to flow. He said there are many questions surrounding the second phase of Trump's plan and that the first phase is still a work in progress.

Falconer said it was important that any stabilization force in Gaza be “backed by a Security Council mandate.”

Axios was the first to report the project.

— Copper reported from Juba, South Sudan, and Lee from Washington. Associated Press writer Karim Chehayeb in Beirut contributed to this report.

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