The UN Security Council voted early this morning to adopt a US-drafted resolution endorsing President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza and authorising an international stabilisation force for the Palestinian enclave.
Israel and Hamas agreed last month to the first phase of Trump’s 20-point plan for Gaza – a ceasefire in their two-year war and a hostage-release deal – but the UN resolution is seen as vital to legitimising a transitional governance body and reassuring countries that are considering sending troops to Gaza.
The text of the resolution says member states can take part in the Board of Peace envisioned as a transitional authority that would oversee reconstruction and economic recovery of Gaza.
It also authorises the international stabilisation force, which would ensure a process of demilitarising Gaza, including by decommissioning weapons and destroying military infrastructure.
Trump’s 20-point plan is included as an annex to the resolution.
Russia, which holds a veto on the Security Council, earlier signalled potential opposition to the resolution but abstained from the vote, allowing the resolution to pass.
The Palestinian Authority issued a statement on Friday backing the US-drafted resolution.
The 15-member council voted 13 to 0 in favour, China also declined to use its veto power to block the measure.
The resolution has proved controversial in Israel because it references a future possibility of statehood for the Palestinians.
The resolution’s text says that ‘conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood’ once the Palestinian Authority has carried out a reform programme and Gaza’s redevelopment has advanced.
“The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous coexistence,” it says.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, under pressure from right-wing members of his government, said on Sunday that Israel remained opposed to a Palestinian state and pledged to demilitarise Gaza ‘the easy way or the hard way’.
Hamas rejected the UN Security Council passing the resolution, saying it fails to meet Palestinians’ rights and demands and seeks to impose an international trusteeship on the enclave that Palestinians and resistance factions oppose.
“Assigning the international force with tasks and roles inside the Gaza Strip, including disarming the resistance, strips it of its neutrality, and turns it into a party to the conflict in favour of the occupation,” the group added.
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