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Plans for an multinational security mission mandated by the UN to disarm Hamas in the Gaza Strip are encountering increasing opposition after the United Arab Emirates stated it will not take part due to the lack of a well-defined legal structure.

Increasing International Concerns

Israel have already ruled out Turkey participation, and the Jordanian King Abdullah has declared that Jordanian forces will not participate. Azerbaijan, previously considered as a potential contributor, did not attend a planning meeting in Istanbul and indicated it would not contribute unless a complete truce was in place.

Emirati officials lacks clarity on a clear structure for the stability force and under such circumstances declines involvement, but will support all diplomatic efforts towards resolution – and stay at the vanguard of relief efforts.

Regional Skepticism and Legal Concerns

The UAE's decision, delivered by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in Abu Dhabi, highlights regional reservations about the provisions of a US-drafted resolution already distributed to diplomats at the UN in New York. The draft places an onus on a US-directed security mission to be the primary means of imposing security in Gaza after Israel have left the territory.

Arab states would like greater responsibilities to be given to a separate local law enforcement agency. Global jurisprudence would also prohibit foreign troops from deploying into contested Palestinian territories unless there was clear Palestinian consent; without it, the mission could be viewed as imposed under international statutes, and arguably reinforcing an illegal Israeli occupation.

Local Perspectives and Appeals for Clarity

A Palestinian American co-author of the ceasefire proposal said: “It is essential that the mission be sent not to stabilise the unlawful presence, but to enforce international law and terminate it. The mission will work as long as it operates in the whole occupied territory, including the occupied territories, at the request of the Palestinian authorities, and has a clear goal to conclude the presence within the context of a independent state of Palestine.”

There is no mention to the West Bank in the American proposal, or to a sovereign Palestine, or a peaceful resolution, a prospect that Israel rejects.

Continuing Discussions and Potential Risks

In-depth talks on the mission mandate, including its leadership structure, started officially on last week in New York, and appear to be lengthy – risking the emergence of a vacuum in Gaza that may empower Hamas.

The United States is suggesting that it command the force although it will not have a large number of personnel deployed on the ground. It has previously in effect taken control of the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza from a recently established civil military coordination centre based in Israel.

Force Objectives and Administrative Function

The draft US resolution outlines the purpose of the security mission as “along with the newly trained and screened law enforcement to assist in protecting frontier zones, secure the security environment in Gaza by ensuring the process of disarming the territory including the destruction and prevention of reconstructing the militant and hostile facilities as well as the permanent decommissioning of weapons from militant factions”.

The force, reporting to a “peace council” chaired by Donald Trump, and not to the UN, would be required to use “all necessary measures” to fulfill its goals.

Regional powers including Qatar are also worried that this authority is overly broad, and if the group is to disarm, the group will solely do so to fellow Palestinians, likely in the civilian police force, at a moment that, from the militant viewpoint, signifies the conclusion of occupation.

They also worry the draft mandate extends to granting the mission a governance function in the territory, a task that was to be reserved for a Palestinian expert panel working in conjunction with a reformed local government.

Humanitarian Aspects and Funding Questions

This “transitional governance administration” in the strip would remain until “the local government has satisfactorily completed its reform program, the approval of which shall be approved to the board of peace”, the draft says. It also “emphasizes the significance” of full relief in the territory, including through the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the Red Crescent.

However, it opens the door the removal of “any organisation found to have misused such assistance”. The phrase permits the council excluding Unrwa, the organization that the global judicial body has said is the lawful distributor of aid.

International Diplomatic Efforts

French officials and Saudi representatives are already pressing for a reference to a sovereign Palestine to be added in the resolution. The Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, is scheduled in the US presidential residence on 18 November, and a Saudi foreign ministry official has said that a mention to a independent Palestine is a requirement.

The Palestinian Authority leader, Mahmoud Abbas, held talks with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on this week to review the PA role.

Neither the UN nor the 15-member UNSC are assigned a oversight role over the stabilisation force, monitoring the execution of the proposal, a point largely overlooked by the draft text. Nothing is outlined about the funding of this security operation, which, according to the US officials, should be largely covered by Gulf states, with Saudi Arabia assuming primary responsibility.

Israel's Demands and Regional Situations

Israel is seeking formal assurances from the US that it be permitted to follow the model of Lebanon and retain the right to return to the territory if it believes disarmament is not occurring at a level or speed it requires.

The Israeli proposal was put to the former US advisor, the ex-president's son-in-law, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in the Israeli capital on Monday to review progress on the truce and the envoy was due to arrive later the same day.

Just the remains of four of the initial 251 captives are still unreturned.

Independently, Israel has been proposing that the territory could still be split in two parts with reconstruction work starting in the Israeli-controlled areas of the region. Western diplomats maintain that this is not part of the Trump plan.