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Plans for an multinational security mission mandated by the United Nations to disarm the militant group in Gaza are encountering increasing resistance after the United Arab Emirates stated it would not join due to the lack of a well-defined legal structure.

Growing International Reservations

Israeli authorities have previously ruled out Turkish participation, and the Jordanian King Abdullah has declared that his country's troops will not participate. The Azerbaijani government, once mooted as a possible participant, did not attend a planning meeting in Turkey and indicated it would not contribute unless a full ceasefire was in place.

Emirati officials does not yet see a defined framework for the stability mission and under such circumstances declines involvement, but will support all diplomatic initiatives towards peace – and stay at the forefront of relief efforts.

Arab Doubts and Legal Issues

The UAE's decision, made by senior envoy Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in the UAE capital, highlights Arab doubts about the terms of a US-drafted document previously circulated to delegates at the UN in New York. The proposal places an onus on a American-led security mission to be the principal means of imposing order in Gaza after Israel have left the region.

Arab states would prefer expanded duties to be assigned to a separate Palestinian civilian police force. International law would also prohibit external forces from deploying into contested Palestinian territories unless there was explicit Palestinian consent; otherwise, the mission could be viewed as imposed under international statutes, and arguably reinforcing an illegal Israeli occupation.

Local Viewpoints and Calls for Definition

A Palestinian American co-author of the Palestinian armistice plan commented: “It is essential that the mission be deployed not to stabilise the unlawful presence, but to uphold international law and terminate it. The mission will succeed as long as it operates in the entire occupied territory, including the occupied territories, at the request of Palestine, and has a clear objective to end the occupation within the framework of a independent Palestinian state.”

There is no mention to the occupied territories in the American proposal, or to a sovereign Palestine, or a two-state solution, a outcome that Israel opposes.

Ongoing Negotiations and Possible Dangers

Detailed negotiations on the mission authority, including its leadership structure, started formally on last week in New York, and appear to be protracted – potentially creating the development of a vacuum in Gaza that may strengthen militant factions.

The United States is proposing that it command the force although it will not have a large number of troops deployed on the terrain. It has previously effectively taken control of the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza from a recently established logistical hub based in Israel.

Mission Objectives and Governance Role

The draft American document outlines the purpose of the stabilisation force as “together with the recently prepared and vetted law enforcement to assist in protecting frontier zones, stabilise the safety situation in the region by guaranteeing the process of demilitarising the Gaza Strip including the destruction and blocking of reconstructing the militant and hostile facilities as well as the permanent removal of arms from non-state armed groups”.

The mission, reporting to a “peace council” led by Donald Trump, and not to the UN, would be required to use “any required actions” to fulfill its objectives.

Arab states including Qatar are also concerned that this authority is overly broad, and if the group is to lay down arms, the faction will solely do so to local counterparts, probably in the civilian police force, at a moment that, from the Hamas perspective, marks the conclusion of occupation.

They also fear the proposed authority extends to granting the stabilisation force a governance role in Gaza, a responsibility that was to be reserved for a Palestinian expert panel working in conjunction with a reformed Palestinian Authority.

Humanitarian Considerations and Funding Questions

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

Nonetheless, it allows for the removal of “any group determined to have misused such assistance”. The phrase permits the council barring Unrwa, the organization that the international court of justice has ruled is the lawful provider of aid.

International Diplomatic Efforts

France and Saudi Arabia are already pressing for a reference to a Palestinian state to be included in the resolution. The Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, is scheduled in the White House on the specified date, and Manal Radwan has said that a mention to a independent Palestine is a prerequisite.

The PA chair, Mahmoud Abbas, met the French leader, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on this week to review the PA role.

Neither the United Nations nor the 15 strong security council are assigned a supervisory role over the stabilisation force, supervising the implementation of the proposal, a aspect largely ignored by the draft text. Nothing is outlined about the financing of this stabilisation mission, which, according to the US officials, should be mostly covered by Gulf states, with the Kingdom assuming primary responsibility.

Israeli Demands and Regional Developments

Israel is seeking written guarantees from the US that it be allowed to follow the pattern of the Lebanese situation and retain the right to re-enter the territory if it believes disarmament is not occurring at a level or pace it requires.

The Israeli proposal was put to the former US advisor, the ex-president's son-in-law, and the American diplomat, Steve Witkoff. The advisor was in the Israeli capital on this week to review developments on the truce and the envoy was due to appear subsequently the same day.

Just the bodies of a small number of the initial hundreds of Israeli hostages remain not recovered.

Independently, Israeli officials has been suggesting that the Gaza Strip could still be split in two with rebuilding efforts beginning in the Israeli-controlled areas of the region. Western diplomats insist that this is not part of the Trump plan.