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Proposals for an multinational security mission mandated by the United Nations to demilitarize the militant group in Gaza are encountering increasing resistance after the United Arab Emirates stated it will not join due to the lack of a clear legal framework.

Increasing International Concerns

Israel have previously ruled out Turkey participation, and the Jordanian King Abdullah has stated that Jordanian forces will not participate. Azerbaijan, previously considered as a possible contributor, did not attend a planning session in Turkey and indicated it would not take part unless a complete truce was in place.

Emirati officials does not yet see a defined structure for the stabilisation force and in this situation will not participate, but will support all political initiatives towards peace – and remain at the vanguard of relief efforts.

Arab Skepticism and Juridical Issues

The UAE's decision, made by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in the UAE capital, highlights regional doubts about the provisions of a American-proposed resolution already distributed to diplomats at the UN in NYC. The draft places an onus on a American-led security mission to be the principal means of imposing security in the territory after Israel have left the territory.

Regional governments would prefer expanded duties to be assigned to a distinct local civilian police force. Global jurisprudence would also prohibit external forces from deploying into contested Palestine unless there was explicit Palestinian consent; otherwise, the force could be seen as coercive under international statutes, and arguably reinforcing an unlawful presence.

Palestinian Perspectives and Appeals for Definition

A Palestinian American co-author of the ceasefire proposal said: “It is essential that the force be sent not to reinforce the unlawful Israeli occupation, but to enforce international law and terminate it. The mission will work as long as it enters the entire occupied territory, including the occupied territories, at the invitation of Palestine, and has a clear objective to end the occupation within the context of a sovereign state of Palestine.”

There is no reference to the West Bank in the US draft resolution, or to a sovereign Palestine, or a peaceful resolution, a outcome that Israeli leadership rejects.

Ongoing Discussions and Potential Dangers

Detailed negotiations on the mission authority, including its command and control, began formally on Thursday in the UN headquarters, and appear to be protracted – risking the emergence of a power gap in the strip that may empower Hamas.

The United States is suggesting that it command the mission although it will not have a large number of troops deployed on the ground. It has already in effect taken control of the distribution of relief supplies into the territory from a new civil military coordination centre based in Israel.

Mission Objectives and Governance Function

The draft American document outlines the purpose of the security mission as “along with the newly trained and screened police force to assist in protecting frontier zones, secure the security environment in Gaza by guaranteeing the process of disarming the territory including the elimination and prevention of reconstructing the militant and offensive infrastructure as well as the permanent decommissioning of weapons from militant factions”.

The mission, reporting to a “board of peace” led by the former US president, and not to the United Nations, would be required to use “all necessary measures” to fulfill its objectives.

Arab states including Qatari officials are also concerned that this mandate is overly broad, and if Hamas is to disarm, the faction will solely do so to fellow Palestinians, probably in the local law enforcement, at a moment that, from the militant viewpoint, signifies the end of occupation.

They also worry the draft mandate spills into granting the stabilisation force a governance function in the territory, a responsibility that was to be set aside for a local technocratic committee working in cooperation with a restructured Palestinian Authority.

Aid Aspects and Funding Questions

This “interim authority” in Gaza would stay until “the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily finished its reform program, the approval of which shall be acceptable to the board of peace”, the proposal states. It also “emphasizes the significance” of unhindered relief in the territory, including through the UN, the ICRC, and the Red Crescent.

However, it opens the door the exclusion of “any organisation found to have improperly used such aid”. The wording permits the board of peace barring the UN relief agency, the organization that the international court of justice has ruled is the lawful distributor of aid.

International Political Initiatives

French officials and Saudi Arabia are currently advocating for a reference to a sovereign Palestine to be included in the document. The Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, is scheduled in the US presidential residence on 18 November, and a Saudi foreign ministry official has stated that a reference to a independent Palestine is a requirement.

The PA chair, Mahmoud Abbas, held talks with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in the French capital on Monday to discuss the PA role.

Neither the UN nor the 15 strong security council are given a oversight role over the mission, supervising the implementation of the resolution, a aspect largely overlooked by the draft text. Nothing is specified about the financing of this stabilisation mission, which, according to the US officials, should be largely covered by Gulf states, with Saudi Arabia assuming primary responsibility.

Israel's Demands and Regional Developments

Israeli authorities is requesting formal assurances from the US that it be permitted to emulate the pattern of the Lebanese situation and reserve the right to re-enter the territory if it considers demilitarization is not occurring at a level or pace it requires.

The request was put to Jared Kushner, the ex-president's relative, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff. The advisor was in Jerusalem on this week to discuss progress on the ceasefire and Witkoff was scheduled to appear later the that day.

Only the remains of four of the original 251 Israeli hostages are still unreturned.

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