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Plans for an multinational security mission mandated by the United Nations to demilitarize Hamas in Gaza are facing growing opposition after the United Arab Emirates stated it will not join due to the lack of a clear legal structure.

Increasing International Concerns

Israel have already ruled out Turkish involvement, and the Jordanian King Abdullah has stated that Jordanian troops will not join. The Azerbaijani government, previously considered as a possible participant, was absent from a preparatory session in Turkey and said it would not take part unless a full ceasefire was in place.

Emirati officials does not yet see a defined structure for the stability force and under such circumstances will not participate, but will support all political initiatives towards resolution – and remain at the forefront of relief efforts.

Regional Skepticism and Legal Concerns

The UAE's announcement, made by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a forum in the UAE capital, highlights regional reservations about the provisions of a American-proposed document previously circulated to diplomats 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 the territory after Israel have left the region.

Regional governments would prefer expanded responsibilities to be given to a distinct Palestinian civilian police force. Global jurisprudence would also prohibit foreign troops from entering occupied Palestine unless there was clear Palestinian consent; otherwise, the mission could be seen as coercive under UN law, and arguably reinforcing an unlawful Israeli occupation.

Palestinian Viewpoints and Calls for Clarity

Jamal Nusseibeh of the ceasefire proposal commented: “It is critical that the force be sent not to stabilise the unlawful Israeli occupation, but to uphold international law and terminate it. The force will succeed as long as it operates in the entire occupied territory, including the West Bank, at the request of the Palestinian authorities, and has a defined goal to conclude the presence within the framework of a sovereign Palestinian state.”

The draft contains no mention to the occupied territories in the American proposal, or to a Palestinian state, or a two-state solution, a prospect that Israel opposes.

Ongoing Discussions and Potential Dangers

In-depth talks on the stabilisation force mandate, including its command and control, started officially on Thursday in the UN headquarters, and appear to be protracted – potentially creating the emergence of a power gap in Gaza that may empower militant factions.

The US is proposing that it lead the mission although it will not have a large number of troops involved on the terrain. It has previously in effect assumed command of the distribution of humanitarian aid into Gaza from a new logistical hub based in Israel.

Force Mandate and Administrative Function

The proposed American document outlines the aim of the security mission as “together with the newly trained and screened police force to help secure border areas, secure the safety situation in the region by ensuring the process of demilitarising the Gaza Strip including the elimination and blocking of rebuilding the militant and hostile facilities as well as the lasting decommissioning of arms from non-state armed groups”.

The force, reporting to a “board of peace” led by Donald Trump, and not to the United Nations, would be mandated to use “any required actions” to achieve its objectives.

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

They also fear the proposed authority spills into giving the mission a administrative role in the territory, a task that was to be reserved for a local expert panel working in cooperation with a reformed local government.

Aid Aspects and Financial Questions

This “transitional governance administration” in Gaza would stay until “the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily completed its reform program, the approval of which shall be acceptable to the board of peace”, the proposal says. It also “underscores the significance” of full humanitarian aid in the territory, including through the United Nations, the ICRC, and the humanitarian organizations.

However, it opens the door the removal of “any organisation determined to have misused such aid”. The phrase leaves open the board of peace barring Unrwa, the body that the global judicial body has ruled is the legal distributor of assistance.

Global Diplomatic Initiatives

France and Saudi representatives are currently pressing for a mention to a sovereign Palestine to be added in the resolution. The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, is scheduled in the White House on 18 November, and a Saudi foreign ministry official has stated that a reference to a Palestinian state is a prerequisite.

The Palestinian Authority leader, Mahmoud Abbas, met the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in the French capital 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 mission, monitoring the implementation of the resolution, a aspect mostly ignored by the proposed document. No details is outlined about the funding of this security operation, which, as per the US officials, should be largely covered by regional nations, with the Kingdom assuming primary responsibility.

Israel's Requests and Regional Situations

Israeli authorities is seeking written guarantees from the US that it be permitted to follow the pattern of the Lebanese situation and reserve the authority to re-enter Gaza if it considers disarmament is not taking place at a level or pace it demands.

The Israeli proposal was put to Jared Kushner, the ex-president's relative, and the American diplomat, Steve Witkoff. The advisor was in Jerusalem on this week to discuss developments on the truce and Witkoff was scheduled to arrive later the that day.

Only the bodies of four of the initial 251 captives remain unreturned.

Separately, Israeli officials has been proposing that the Gaza Strip could still be split in two parts with reconstruction work beginning in the Israel occupied parts of the region. International officials insist that this is not part of the former US administration's proposal.