International leaders praised the UN Security Council decision on Monday to approve a U.S. resolution focused on deploying an international stabilization force in Gaza, based on U.S. President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan brokered ahead of the Israel-Hamas cease-fire last month.
The U.N. vote came about following nearly two weeks of negotiations, when Arab nations and the Palestinians pressed the United States to strengthen language about Palestinian self-determination.
Trump hailed the vote, claiming it would lead to “further Peace all over the World.”
The vote was “acknowledging and endorsing the BOARD OF PEACE, which will be chaired by me,” he wrote on social media. “This will go down as one of the biggest approvals in the History of the United Nations [and] will lead to further Peace all over the World.”
Trump said the members of the Board of Peace will be named in the coming weeks, along with “many more exciting announcements.”
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Trump boards Air Force One in Maryland in November. Credit: Getty Images via AFP/Roberto Schmidt
Trump boards Air Force One in Maryland in November. Credit: Getty Images via AFP/Roberto Schmidt
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump “and his tireless, devoted team,” writing on X that “the courage and sacrifice of our brave soldiers, along with President Trump’s diplomatic efforts, helped bring home all of the living hostages and most of the deceased ones.”
The Prime Minister’s Office sidestepped the clause addressing Palestinian statehood in English, while avoiding any mention of the resolution on its Hebrew-language channels, instead calling on neighbouring countries to “join us in expelling Hamas and its supporters from the region.”
Asked what the prime minister had meant by expelling Hamas, a spokesperson said that it would mean “ensuring there is no Hamas in Gaza,” and “Hamas has no ability to govern the Palestinian people inside the Gaza Strip.”
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Humanitarian aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip from Egypt. Credit: Eliyahu Hershowitz
Humanitarian aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip from Egypt. Credit: Eliyahu Hershowitz
The State of Israel and PM Netanyahu applaud President @realDonaldTrump and his tireless and devoted team. The courage and sacrifice of our brave soldiers, along with President Trump’s diplomatic efforts, helped bring home all of the living hostages and most of the deceased ones.
Hamas, in a statement, reiterated that it will not disarm and argued that its fight against Israel is legitimate resistance, potentially pitting the militant group against the international force authorized by the resolution.
“The resolution imposes an international guardianship mechanism on the Gaza Strip, which our people and their factions reject,” Hamas said in its statement, issued after the adoption of the resolution.
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The United Nations Security Council, September. Credit: Charly Triballeau/AP
The United Nations Security Council, September. Credit: Charly Triballeau/AP
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the passing of the resolution an important step in the consolidation of the cease-fire, in a statement sent to reporters.
“It is essential now to translate the diplomatic momentum into concrete and urgently needed steps on the ground,” Guterres said, adding that the U.N. is committed to scaling up humanitarian assistance in Gaza.
Guterres also said it was important to continue advancing to the second phase of the U.S. plan, leading to a political process to achieve a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.
A spokesperson to the UN Children’s Agency told a Geneva press briefing on Tuesday that more than a month after the cease-fire, they still cannot get enough aid into Gaza.
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U.K. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said Tuesday that the international community needed to “work together to take forward the 20-point plan and to turn it into a just and lasting peace.” Cooper called for “urgent action to open all the crossings, lift restrictions and flood Gaza with aid.”
The Indonesian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Yvonne Mewengkang said it welcomed the resolution and stressed the importance of every party’s involvement in it, “especially the Palestinian Authority”.
“The resolution prioritises conflict resolution and prolonged peace through the capacity building of the Palestinian authorities,” Yvonne said in a statement. “Indonesia will always support an independent and sovereign Palestinian nation.”
The Trump administration has been trying to persuade countries such as Indonesia and Egypt to contribute troops to the peacekeeping force, which will back the process of demilitarising Gaza by decommissioning weapons and destroying military infrastructure.
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Trump, alongside Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaks during a multilateral meeting to discuss the situation in Gaza, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City in September. Credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP
Trump, alongside Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaks during a multilateral meeting to discuss the situation in Gaza, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City in September. Credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP
President Prabowo Subianto told the U.N. General Assembly in September that Indonesia was prepared to deploy 20,000 or more peacekeeping troops in Gaza if there was a UN resolution.
Turkish officials have previously said Turkey is ready to contribute to an international force in Gaza despite Israeli opposition to a Turkish presence.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said that the Security Council decision “shows that the United Nations system is working,” during a visit to Belgrade on Tuesday.
“Germany has always made clear that, for us, this resolution is the decisive key to a peaceful future of equalization between Israel and the Palestinians,” Wadephul said, calling the vote a “decisive milestone.”
Wadephul said the German government remained ready to contribute to Gaza’s reconstruction, which it says Egypt is expected to lead efforts, while Berlin waits for an invitation to a reconstruction conference.
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The proposal still gives no timeline or guarantee for an independent state, only saying it’s possible after advances in the reconstruction of Gaza and reforms of the Palestinian Authority.
A key to the resolution’s adoption was support from Arab and other Muslim nations that had been critical for the cease-fire and potentially could contribute to the international force. The U.S. mission to the United Nations distributed a joint statement Friday with Qatar, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Jordan, and Turkey calling for “swift adoption” of the U.S. proposal.
The plan calls for the stabilization troops to secure Gaza border areas, along with a Palestinian police force that they have trained and vetted. The force will coordinate with other countries to secure the flow of humanitarian assistance, and should closely consult and cooperate with neighboring Egypt and Israel.
“The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous coexistence,” the resolution adds.