The United States has submitted a draft resolution to the United Nations Security Council to establish an International Security Force (ISF) for Gaza. The proposal, circulated to council members, seeks to create a multinational force with a broad, two-year mandate to administer and protect the territory, with the first troops potentially deploying by January 2026 . This move is a key part of the US-brokered ceasefire deal and aims to fill the security vacuum in the war-shattered enclave.
The proposed ISF is envisioned as an enforcement, rather than peacekeeping, force . Its mandate would include securing Gaza's borders with Israel and Egypt, protecting humanitarian aid corridors, and ensuring the demilitarization of the Strip by dismantling military infrastructure and disarming non-state armed groups . A significant part of its long-term mission would be to train a new, reformed Palestinian police force to eventually assume security responsibilities .
Oversight of the security force and Gaza's transition would fall to a new "Board of Peace," which former US President Donald Trump has stated he will chair . This board would function as a transitional governance body, overseeing security priorities and the massive reconstruction effort . It would supervise a technocratic, apolitical Palestinian committee tasked with daily civil administration, aiming to create stability before a potential handover to a reformed Palestinian Authority .
The political maneuvering occurs against a backdrop of profound human suffering. A recent UN assessment estimates that $70 billion is needed to reconstruct Gaza, where destruction reaches 84% of buildings and up to 92% in Gaza City . The UN has officially declared a famine in the region, with 2.1 million people facing extreme hunger and children suffering from severe malnutrition that will have generational consequences . Although the ceasefire has allowed some aid to enter, humanitarians report that far too little is getting through to meet the desperate needs .
Several Muslim-majority nations, including Indonesia and Turkey, have expressed a conditional willingness to participate, pending a clear UN mandate and a well-defined mission . A central challenge for the force will be its relationship with Hamas, which has re-established itself as the de facto administrative authority and has shown no intention to disarm voluntarily . This sets the stage for a complex and potentially volatile environment for any international force deployed to the region.