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Plans for an multinational security mission mandated by the UN to demilitarize Hamas in Gaza are encountering growing resistance after the United Arab Emirates stated it will not join due to the lack of a well-defined legal framework.

Growing Global Reservations

Israeli authorities have already ruled out Turkish participation, and the Jordanian King Abdullah has stated that his country's forces will not participate. Azerbaijan, once mooted as a possible contributor, 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 clear framework for the stabilisation force and in this situation will not participate, but will support all diplomatic efforts towards peace – and remain at the forefront of relief efforts.

Arab Doubts and Legal Concerns

The UAE's decision, delivered by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a conference in Abu Dhabi, highlights regional doubts about the terms of a American-proposed document already circulated to delegates 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an onus on a American-led security mission to be the principal means of imposing security in Gaza after Israel have withdrawn from the region.

Arab states would like expanded responsibilities to be assigned to a distinct local civilian police force. International law would also prohibit external forces from deploying into contested Palestine unless there was clear Palestinian consent; otherwise, the mission could be seen as coercive under international statutes, and arguably reinforcing an illegal presence.

Local Perspectives and Appeals for Clarity

Jamal Nusseibeh of the ceasefire proposal commented: “It is critical that the mission be sent not to reinforce the illegal presence, but to uphold global standards and terminate it. The mission will succeed as long as it enters the whole occupied territory, including the West Bank, at the invitation of the Palestinian authorities, and has a defined objective to end the occupation within the context of a sovereign Palestinian state.”

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

Ongoing Negotiations and Potential Risks

In-depth negotiations on the mission authority, including its command and control, began officially on Thursday in New York, and look likely to be lengthy – risking the development of a power gap in the strip that may empower Hamas.

The United States is suggesting 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 relief supplies into the territory from a recently established logistical hub based in Israel.

Mission Objectives and Administrative Role

The draft American document defines the purpose of the security mission as “along with the newly trained and vetted police force to help secure frontier zones, stabilise the safety situation in the region by ensuring the process of disarming the Gaza Strip including the destruction and blocking of rebuilding the militant and hostile facilities as well as the lasting removal of arms from non-state armed groups”.

The force, reporting to a “peace council” chaired by Donald Trump, and not to the UN, would be required to use “any required actions” to achieve its goals.

Regional powers including Qatar are also worried that this authority is overly broad, and if Hamas is to disarm, the group will only do so to local counterparts, likely in the local law enforcement, at a time that, from the Hamas viewpoint, marks the conclusion of occupation.

They also worry the proposed authority extends to giving the mission a administrative function in the territory, a task that was to be set aside for a local technocratic committee working in conjunction with a restructured local government.

Humanitarian Aspects and Financial Questions

This “transitional governance administration” in Gaza would remain until “the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily finished its reform program, the approval of which shall be acceptable to the board of peace”, the draft states. It also “emphasizes the importance” of full humanitarian aid in Gaza, including through the UN, the ICRC, and the humanitarian organizations.

However, it opens the door the removal of “any group found to have misused such assistance”. The wording permits the board of peace barring the UN relief agency, the organization that the international court of justice has said is the lawful provider of aid.

International Diplomatic Initiatives

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

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

Not the United Nations nor the 15-member security council are assigned a oversight role over the stabilisation force, supervising the implementation of the resolution, a point largely overlooked by the draft text. No details is specified about the funding of this stabilisation mission, which, according to the Americans, should be mostly borne by Gulf states, with the Kingdom assuming primary responsibility.

Israeli Demands and Regional Situations

Israeli authorities is seeking formal assurances from the US that it be allowed to follow the pattern of the Lebanese situation and reserve the right to re-enter Gaza if it considers demilitarization is not taking place at a level or pace it requires.

The request was presented to Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s relative, and the American diplomat, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in Jerusalem on this week to discuss developments on the truce and the envoy was scheduled to appear subsequently the same day.

Only the remains of a small number of the original hundreds of Israeli hostages are still unreturned.

Separately, Israeli officials has been suggesting that the territory could still be divided in two with rebuilding efforts starting in the Israeli-controlled parts of the region. International officials insist that this is not part of the Trump plan.