Having assiduously sidelined the United Nations over Gaza for the last two years, on Monday night the US switched tack to push through the Security Council by unanimity a resolution endorsing Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan. China and Russia abstained, complaining it does not give the UN a clear enough role in the future of Gaza.
Most importantly, Resolution 2803 (2025) provided a two-year mandate for an international stabilisation force and a transitional governing “board of peace” to administer the territory, probably chaired by the US president himself.
The force, which the US expects to number some 20,000 drawn from a range of states, has been given a robust authority “to use all necessary measures to carry out its mandate consistent with international law, including international humanitarian law”. That means the disarming of Hamas, the protection of civilians, the training of a new Palestinian police force, and securing borders. It will not be a UN force but one authorised by it, controlled ultimately by the board of peace.
Crucially, to secure the support of Arab states, the resolution also incorporates a tentative pointer to the opening of a path to Palestinian statehood, but not to the two-state solution which is the long-standing cornerstone of an international consensus on the way forward. Nevertheless, Israel rejected the reference, just as Hamas denounced the stabilisation force as another occupation force and insisted it would not disarm.
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The Palestinian Authority said it was ready to take part in the resolution’s implementation. In copperfastening the international legitimacy of the peace plan, the resolution is a significant step forward and a diplomatic success for Trump, although the way ahead is still hugely problematic. The composition and command of the force, both likely to be controversial, will determine its acceptability to Palestinians, and its ability to secure humanitarian supplies and borders will be critically dependent on an Israeli goodwill that has been sorely lacking. Much of the road ahead still remains uncharted, but it is crucial to press ahead.
