United Arab Emirates Refuses to Join Gazan Stabilisation Force Without Defined Juridical Structure

Proposals for an international stabilisation force authorized by the UN to disarm the militant group in Gaza are facing increasing opposition after the United Arab Emirates stated it would not join due to the lack of a well-defined legal structure.

Increasing International Concerns

Israel have already ruled out Turkish participation, and Jordan's King Abdullah has stated that Jordanian troops will not join. Azerbaijan, previously mooted as a potential contributor, did not attend a planning meeting in Turkey and said it would not take part unless a full truce was in place.

The UAE lacks clarity on a clear framework for the stability mission and under such circumstances will not participate, but backs all diplomatic efforts towards peace – and remain at the forefront of relief efforts.

Arab Doubts and Juridical Issues

The UAE's decision, delivered by diplomatic representative Dr Anwar Gargash at a conference in the UAE capital, highlights Arab reservations about the provisions of a American-proposed resolution already distributed to diplomats at the UN in NYC. The proposal assigns responsibility on a US-directed security mission to be the principal means of imposing order in Gaza after Israel have withdrawn from the region.

Regional governments would prefer expanded duties to be given to a separate Palestinian law enforcement agency. Global jurisprudence would also forbid foreign troops from entering contested Palestine unless there was explicit Palestinian consent; otherwise, the force could be seen as imposed under UN law, and arguably stabilising an illegal Israeli occupation.

Local Perspectives and Calls for Clarity

Jamal Nusseibeh of the ceasefire proposal commented: “It is critical that the force be deployed not to reinforce the unlawful Israeli occupation, but to enforce international law and terminate it. The mission will work as long as it operates in the entire occupied territory, including the occupied territories, at the invitation of Palestine, and has a defined goal to conclude the occupation within the context of a independent Palestinian state.”

There is no mention to the West Bank in the American proposal, or to a Palestinian state, or a peaceful resolution, a prospect that Israeli leadership opposes.

Ongoing Negotiations and Potential Dangers

Detailed talks on the stabilisation force mandate, including its command and control, began officially on last week in the UN headquarters, and look likely to be protracted – potentially creating the emergence of a power gap in the strip that may empower Hamas.

The US is proposing that it lead the force although it will not have a large number of troops involved on the ground. It has already in effect assumed command of the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza from a recently established civil military coordination centre based in the neighboring country.

Mission Mandate and Administrative Role

The draft American document outlines the aim of the security mission as “together with the newly trained and vetted law enforcement to assist in protecting frontier zones, secure the safety situation in the region by guaranteeing the procedure of disarming the territory including the elimination and blocking of reconstructing the militant and offensive infrastructure as well as the permanent removal of arms from militant factions”.

The mission, answerable to a “board of peace” led by the former US president, and not to the UN, would be mandated to use “any required actions” to fulfill its objectives.

Regional powers including Qatari officials are also worried that this mandate is overly broad, and if the group is to lay down arms, the group will only do so to fellow Palestinians, likely in the civilian police force, at a moment that, from the militant perspective, signifies the end of occupation.

They also worry the proposed authority spills into granting the stabilisation force a governance role in the territory, a responsibility that was to be set aside for a local technocratic committee working in cooperation with a reformed Palestinian Authority.

Humanitarian Considerations and Funding Questions

This “interim authority” in the strip would remain until “the local government has adequately finished its reform program, the satisfaction of which shall be approved to the BoP”, the draft states. It also “underscores the significance” of full relief in the territory, including through the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the humanitarian organizations.

Nonetheless, it allows for the exclusion of “any organisation found to have improperly used such assistance”. The phrase leaves open the council barring Unrwa, the organization that the global judicial body has ruled is the lawful distributor of aid.

International Diplomatic Efforts

France and Saudi Arabia are already advocating for a reference to a Palestinian state to be included in the resolution. The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, is due 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 prerequisite.

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

Neither the United Nations nor the 15 strong security council are given a supervisory function over the mission, supervising the implementation of the proposal, a aspect largely ignored by the proposed document. No details is specified about the funding of this stabilisation mission, which, according to the Americans, should be largely borne by regional nations, with the Kingdom assuming primary responsibility.

Israeli Demands and Regional Situations

Israel is requesting written guarantees from the US that it be allowed to follow the model of Lebanon and retain the right to re-enter Gaza if it considers demilitarization is not occurring at a scale or speed it requires.

The request was presented to Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, and the US special envoy, Steve Witkoff. The advisor was in Jerusalem on this week to review progress on the truce and Witkoff was scheduled to arrive subsequently the that day.

Only the remains of four of the original 251 Israeli hostages are still not recovered.

Separately, Israeli officials has been suggesting that the Gaza Strip could yet be split in two with reconstruction work starting in the Israel occupied parts of the region. Western diplomats maintain that this is not part of the former US administration's proposal.