JERUSALEM: Israel has approved the legal framework allowing a multinational security force to enter Gaza under US President Donald Trump’s proposed ceasefire plan, an Israeli official said on Sunday, ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington.
According to the official, Israel’s security cabinet endorsed the measure on Sunday, clearing the way for the deployment of the International Stabilisation Force (ISF). Netanyahu is scheduled to travel to Washington on Monday and meet President Trump the following day.
The official said the ISF will initially comprise around 200 personnel from “friendly countries such as Uganda and Morocco”, who will be deployed in parts of Gaza that are not under Israeli military control. Each participating contingent will require separate approval from Israel before entering the enclave.
The timeline for the force’s deployment has not yet been announced.
The proposal is part of Trump’s broader peace initiative for Gaza, unveiled after a ceasefire agreement reached in October. The plan calls for increased humanitarian assistance, governance by Palestinian technocrats, Hamas to surrender its weapons, and a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces.
However, implementation of the plan has stalled. The proposed civilian body, known as the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), has yet to begin operating inside the territory.
Large parts of Gaza remain devastated after nearly two years of Israeli military operations launched in response to the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Israel currently controls an estimated 64 per cent of Gaza, while nearly two million Palestinians remain concentrated in a narrow coastal strip, living mostly in tents or damaged buildings under severe humanitarian conditions.
Hamas has continued to reject calls to disarm, while Israel has indicated it intends to expand its control to around 70pc of the enclave and has maintained near-daily military operations.
Trump’s proposal also includes the creation of a Board of Peace, an international body tasked with overseeing implementation of the framework, including supervision of the multinational security force.
The board is also preparing a pilot humanitarian zone in Gaza as part of efforts to revive the stalled peace initiative, according to one of its officials earlier this month.
Nickolay Mladenov, Trump’s Board of Peace envoy for Gaza, welcomed Israel’s decision.
“It is a critical part of the agreed framework for stabilising Gaza, supporting demilitarisation, and enabling the transition to effective Palestinian transitional administration under the NCAG,” he wrote on X.
