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Proposals for an multinational security mission authorized by the United Nations to demilitarize the militant group in the Gaza Strip are facing growing resistance after the United Arab Emirates stated it would not take part due to the absence of a clear legal framework.

Increasing International Reservations

Israeli authorities have previously excluded Turkish participation, and Jordan's King Abdullah has stated that his country's troops will not participate. The Azerbaijani government, previously considered as a possible participant, was absent from a preparatory meeting in Turkey and said it would not contribute unless a complete ceasefire was in place.

The UAE does not yet see a defined structure for the stabilisation force and in this situation will not participate, but will support all political efforts towards resolution – and stay at the forefront of relief efforts.

Regional Skepticism and Juridical Issues

The UAE's decision, made by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a conference in Abu Dhabi, reflects Arab reservations about the terms of a US-drafted document already circulated to diplomats at the UN in NYC. The draft assigns responsibility on a US-directed stabilisation force to be the principal means of ensuring order in the territory after Israeli forces have left the territory.

Regional governments would prefer expanded duties to be given to a distinct Palestinian law enforcement agency. International law would also prohibit external forces from entering occupied Palestinian territories unless there was clear Palestinian consent; without it, the mission could be seen as coercive under international statutes, and potentially reinforcing an unlawful presence.

Local Viewpoints and Calls for Definition

Jamal Nusseibeh of the ceasefire proposal said: “It is essential that the mission be deployed not to reinforce the illegal Israeli occupation, but to enforce international law and end it. The mission will succeed as long as it operates in the entire occupied territory, including the West Bank, at the invitation of the Palestinian authorities, and has a clear goal to end the occupation within the framework of a sovereign Palestinian state.”

The draft contains no mention to the occupied territories in the American proposal, or to a sovereign Palestine, or a peaceful resolution, a prospect that Israeli leadership rejects.

Ongoing Discussions and Possible Dangers

Detailed negotiations on the mission authority, including its leadership structure, began officially on last week in New York, and look likely to be protracted – risking the development of a power gap in the strip that may empower Hamas.

The US is suggesting that it lead the mission although it will not have many troops involved on the terrain. It has already in effect taken control of the delivery of relief supplies into the territory from a recently established logistical hub based in the neighboring country.

Force Mandate and Administrative Function

The proposed American document defines the purpose of the security mission as “along with the newly trained and vetted law enforcement to help secure frontier zones, secure the security environment in the region by ensuring the process of disarming the Gaza Strip including the elimination and prevention of reconstructing the militant and offensive infrastructure as well as the lasting decommissioning of weapons from militant factions”.

The mission, reporting to a “peace council” chaired by Donald Trump, and not to the United Nations, would be mandated to use “any required actions” to achieve its objectives.

Regional powers including Qatari officials are also concerned that this mandate is too expansive, and if the group is to disarm, the group will only do so to fellow Palestinians, probably in the local law enforcement, at a time that, from the Hamas perspective, marks the end of Israeli presence.

They also worry the draft mandate extends to granting the stabilisation force a governance role in Gaza, a task that was to be reserved for a Palestinian expert panel working in conjunction with a restructured Palestinian Authority.

Humanitarian Considerations and Funding Issues

This “interim authority” in Gaza would stay until “the Palestinian Authority has adequately completed its reform program, the satisfaction of which shall be acceptable to the board of peace”, the proposal says. It also “underscores the importance” of unhindered humanitarian aid in the territory, including through the UN, the ICRC, and the humanitarian organizations.

Nonetheless, it opens the door the exclusion of “any group found to have misused such aid”. The phrase permits the council excluding Unrwa, the body that the international court of justice has said is the lawful distributor of assistance.

Global Political Efforts

France and Saudi Arabia are already advocating for a mention to a sovereign Palestine to be added in the resolution. The Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, is due in the US presidential residence on the specified date, and Manal Radwan has stated that a reference to a Palestinian state is a prerequisite.

The PA chair, Mahmoud Abbas, held talks with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in the French capital on Monday to review the authority's function.

Not the UN nor the 15 strong security council are given a oversight function over the stabilisation force, monitoring the implementation of the proposal, a point largely overlooked by the draft text. Nothing is outlined about the funding of this stabilisation mission, which, as per the Americans, should be largely borne by Gulf states, with the Kingdom taking the lead.

Israel's Requests and Local Situations

Israel is seeking written guarantees from the US that it be allowed to emulate the pattern of Lebanon and reserve the right to re-enter Gaza if it believes demilitarization is not occurring at a scale or speed it demands.

The Israeli proposal was put to Jared Kushner, the ex-president's relative, and the American diplomat, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in the Israeli capital on Monday to review progress on the ceasefire and Witkoff was due to appear subsequently the that day.

Only the bodies of four of the original 251 captives are still not recovered.

Separately, Israeli officials has been proposing that the Gaza Strip could yet be split in two with reconstruction work starting in the Israeli-controlled parts of the region. International officials maintain that this is not part of the Trump plan.