đ Share this article United Arab Emirates Refuses to Participate in Gazan Stabilisation Mission Without Clear Legal Framework Plans for an international stabilisation force mandated by the UN to disarm the militant group in Gaza are facing growing resistance after the UAE announced it will not take part due to the lack of a well-defined legal framework. Increasing International Concerns Israel have already ruled out Turkey involvement, and Jordan's King Abdullah has stated that Jordanian forces will not participate. The Azerbaijani government, once considered as a potential contributor, did not attend a preparatory meeting in Istanbul and indicated it would not take part unless a full ceasefire was established. The UAE does not yet see a defined structure for the stability mission and in this situation will not participate, but will support all diplomatic efforts towards peace â and remain at the forefront of relief efforts. Regional Skepticism and Legal Issues The UAE's decision, delivered by senior envoy Dr Anwar Gargash at a conference in the UAE capital, highlights Arab doubts about the terms of a American-proposed document previously circulated to diplomats at the UN in New York. The draft places an onus on a US-directed stabilisation force to be the principal means of ensuring order in the territory after Israel have left the region. Arab states would like expanded responsibilities to be assigned to a distinct Palestinian law enforcement agency. International law would also forbid external forces from deploying into contested Palestine unless there was clear local approval; without it, the force could be seen as imposed under UN law, and potentially stabilising an unlawful presence. Local Viewpoints and Appeals for Definition A Palestinian American co-author of the ceasefire proposal commented: âIt is critical that the mission be deployed not to stabilise the illegal presence, but to enforce global standards and terminate it. The force will succeed as long as it operates in the entire occupied territory, including the West Bank, at the invitation of the Palestinian authorities, and has a clear objective to end the presence within the framework of a independent state of Palestine.â The draft contains no mention to the occupied territories in the American proposal, or to a Palestinian state, or a peaceful resolution, a prospect that Israeli leadership rejects. Continuing Negotiations and Possible Risks In-depth negotiations on the mission authority, including its leadership structure, started formally on last week in the UN headquarters, and look likely to be lengthy â risking the emergence of a power gap in the strip that may empower Hamas. The US is suggesting that it lead the force although it will not have a large number of troops involved on the terrain. It has previously in effect taken control of the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza from a new civil military coordination centre based in Israel. Mission Mandate and Administrative Role The proposed American document defines the aim of the security mission as âtogether with the newly trained and vetted law enforcement to help secure frontier zones, secure the safety situation in Gaza by guaranteeing the process of demilitarising the territory including the elimination and blocking of reconstructing the military terror and hostile facilities as well as the permanent removal of weapons from militant factionsâ. The force, answerable to a âpeace councilâ chaired by the former US president, and not to the United Nations, would be mandated to use âany required actionsâ to fulfill its objectives. Arab states including Qatari officials are also concerned that this authority is too expansive, and if the group is to disarm, the group will solely do so to fellow Palestinians, likely in the local law enforcement, at a moment that, from the militant viewpoint, signifies the conclusion of occupation. They also fear the proposed authority extends to granting the mission a governance function in Gaza, a task that was to be reserved for a local technocratic committee working in conjunction with a reformed Palestinian Authority. Humanitarian Considerations and Financial Questions This âtransitional governance administrationâ in Gaza would remain until âthe local government has satisfactorily finished its restructuring plan, the satisfaction of which shall be approved to the board of peaceâ, the draft states. It also âunderscores the importanceâ of full relief in Gaza, including through the United Nations, the ICRC, and the humanitarian organizations. Nonetheless, it opens the door the exclusion of âany organisation determined to have misused such assistanceâ. The wording permits the council barring the UN relief agency, the organization that the international court of justice has said is the lawful provider of assistance. International Political Efforts France and Saudi representatives are already advocating for a mention to a Palestinian state to be included in the resolution. The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, is scheduled in the White House on the specified date, and a Saudi foreign ministry official has said that a reference to a Palestinian state is a prerequisite. The Palestinian Authority leader, Mahmoud Abbas, met the French leader, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris on this week to review the PA role. Not the UN nor the 15 strong security council are assigned a oversight function over the mission, supervising the implementation of the proposal, a aspect largely ignored by the proposed document. No details is specified about the financing of this stabilisation mission, which, as per the Americans, should be mostly borne by Gulf states, with Saudi Arabia taking the lead. Israel's Requests and Regional Situations Israel is seeking formal assurances from the United States that it be permitted to follow the model of the Lebanese situation and reserve the right to re-enter Gaza if it considers demilitarization is not occurring at a scale or pace it demands. The request was put to the former US advisor, Donald Trumpâs relative, and the American diplomat, Steve Witkoff. Kushner was in Jerusalem on Monday to discuss developments on the ceasefire and the envoy was scheduled to appear later the that day. Just the bodies of a small number of the original hundreds of captives are still not recovered. Separately, Israel has been proposing that the Gaza Strip could still be divided in two parts with reconstruction work beginning in the Israel occupied parts of the strip. International officials insist that this is not part of the Trump plan.