UAE proposes temporary international mission to restore order in Gaza

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said yesterday it is considering deploying a temporary international mission upon an invitation from the Palestinian government to establish order and lay the foundation for a qualified government capable of uniting the West Bank and Gaza under a single, legitimate Palestinian authority, Anadolu reported.

This proposal was announced by UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation Reem Al Hashimy in a statement published by the Foreign Ministry.

“The UAE has dispatched 39,756 tonnes of urgent supplies to the Gaza Strip through 8 ships, 1,271 trucks, and 337 flights,” the statement said.

“A return to the status quo before 7 October 2023 cannot achieve the desired sustainable peace for both the Palestinians, Israelis, and the wider international community,” it added.

The statement said consolidating peace and security and ending the humanitarian suffering “should begin by the deployment of a temporary international mission in Gaza with a formal invitation from the Palestinian government.”

The new Palestinian government must ensure “transparent operations aligned with the highest global standards,” it added.

US: ‘UNRWA is not a terrorist organisation’, Israel should not designate it as such

“This international mission will be responsible for efficiently responding to the humanitarian crisis the citizens in Gaza are facing, establishing law and order, laying the groundwork for governance, and paving the way to reunite Gaza and the West Bank under a single, legitimate Palestinian Authority,” the statement said.

The announcement comes after a secret meeting held last week between officials from the US, Israel and the UAE in Abu Dhabi to discuss plans for Gaza after the war ends, according to an Axios report citing two Israeli officials.

The Israeli officials said UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah Bin Zayed hosted the meeting while President Joe Biden’s top Middle East adviser Brett McGurk and State Department counsellor Tom Sullivan attended along with Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, a close confidant of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Two senior Israeli defence officials who have been working on Israel’s proposals for day-after plans for Gaza also travelled with Dermer to Abu Dhabi, the officials said.

According to Axios, a day before the Israelis arrived in Abu Dhabi, the Emiratis laid out their proposals for the day-after the war in an op-ed by Bin Zayed ‘s special envoy Lana Nusseibeh.

Nusseibeh advocated for deploying a temporary international mission to Gaza which would respond to the humanitarian crisis, establish law and order, and lay the groundwork for governance.

“The Israeli government would need to allow the Palestinian Authority to have a role in governing Gaza and agree to a political process based on the two-state solution while the US would have a leadership role in any day-after initiative,” Nusseibeh said.

According to Axios, while the UAE wants to be part of a solution in Gaza that does not include Hamas, it also has strong reservations about the current leadership of the Palestinian Authority.

The Palestinian political landscape has been divided since 2007, with Hamas controlling Gaza, while the West Bank is governed by administrations formed by the Fatah movement, led by President Mahmoud Abbas.