US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that Washington is “optimistic” about the chances of establishing the International Stabilization Force in Gaza and is working on advancing a new draft through the UN Security Council to create the unit.
“We’re making good progress on the language of the resolution, and hopefully we’ll have action on it very soon. We don’t want to lose momentum on this,” Rubio told reporters in Canada, where he attended a G7 summit.
The US is looking to bring the resolution creating the international mandate for establishing the ISF to a vote in the coming days so that force can deploy by the beginning of 2026, a Western diplomat told The Times of Israel.
Whether or not the US can convince countries to contribute troops to the force will be a separate endeavor, with many privately indicating that they don’t want to send soldiers into a war zone where they’d be expected to use force to disarm Hamas.
A copy of the latest draft of the resolution obtained by The Times of Israel on Wednesday indicates that the ISF could be tasked with such operations.
Get The Times of Israel’s Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the terms
The force will “stabilize the security environment in Gaza by ensuring the process of demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, including the destruction and prevention of rebuilding of the military, terror, and offensive infrastructure, as well as the permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state armed groups,” the draft resolution states.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to traveling journalists at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, on November 12, 2025, after the G7 foreign ministers meeting. (Mandel Ngan/Pool Photo via AP)
The resolution grants the ISF a two-year mandate during which a Trump-chaired “Board of Peace” would oversee “a transitional (Palestinian) governance administration… until such time as the Palestinian Authority has satisfactorily completed its reform program… and can securely and effectively take back control of Gaza.”
Asked whether the ISF will be a peace enforcer, rather than just a peacekeeping force, Rubio said, “It shouldn’t be a fighting force.”
He claimed that the “agreement that was signed and that all parties agreed to calls for the demilitarization of Hamas,” apparently referring to US President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan for ending the Gaza war. Except that agreement was not signed by any country. Dozens of countries did indeed provide varying levels of verbal support, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu verbally accepted it in September.
However, the deal actually signed by Israel and Hamas on October 9 only dealt with an initial ceasefire, IDF pullback, hostage-prisoner swap and humanitarian aid provisions.
US officials have claimed that Hamas leaders pledged to disarm during a meeting they held with Trump’s top aides on the eve of the ceasefire signing. For its part, Hamas has publicly and repeatedly rejected the notion that it will disarm.
“As far as demilitarization is concerned. That’s a commitment Hamas made. That’s a commitment all of our partners on this deal made, and we expect that those countries… bring about pressure on Hamas to live up to that commitment,” Rubio said.
IDF troops operate on the eastern side of the Yellow Line in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, in a handout photo issued on November 9, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
“The question is, who’s going to be standing on that line and beyond it to provide security? Because you’re going to need security if you want to really flood Gaza [with aid], particularly in that red area that’s not in Israeli control. If you really want to see a huge uptick, not just in humanitarian assistance but redevelopment, you’re going to need to have security, and that can’t be Hamas,” Rubio said.
The secretary of state was then asked whether the ISF will be deployed on the side of the western side of the Yellow Line currently controlled by Hamas. Rubio said the goal is for there eventually to be no Yellow Line, meaning that Israel withdraws from the entire Strip and that Hamas is no longer in control of any of it.
“Eventually, none of it should be under Hamas control. There should be a civilian Palestinian organization that runs Gaza, and the goal is to stand that organization up, give it capacity, allow it to grow in both capability and credibility, and ultimately, it will govern Gaza,” he continued.
“The Israelis don’t want to govern Gaza, we don’t want to govern Gaza, and no country in the Middle East wants to govern Gaza. But it’ll take some time to build up that capability, and in the interim, someone has to provide security,” Rubio said, referring to the ISF.
Watch DocuNation Season 3: The Heart of Israel
when you join the ToI Community
Support The Times of Israel’s independent journalism and receive access to our documentary series, DocuNation: The Heart of Israel.
In this season of DocuNation, you can stream seven outstanding Israeli documentaries with English subtitles and then join a live online discussion with the filmmakers. The selected films show Israel beyond the conflict: a place of storytellers and musicians, of dreamers, makers, and communities rooted in meaning and trust.
When you watch DocuNation, you’re also supporting Israeli creators at a time when it’s increasingly difficult for them to share their work globally.
To learn more about DocuNation: The Heart of Israel, click here.
Support ToI and get DocuNation
Support ToI and get DocuNation
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You appreciate our journalism
You clearly find our careful reporting valuable, in a time when facts are often distorted and news coverage often lacks context.
Your support is essential to continue our work. We want to continue delivering the professional journalism you value, even as the demands on our newsroom have grown dramatically since October 7.
So today, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6 a month you’ll become our partners while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel