No green light granted to entry of int’l force into Gaza, Israel says
Israel’s political leadership has not approved the entry of the International Stabilization Force into Gaza, the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem said on Thursday.
The PMO added that, contrary to reports, “Israel has made clear there will be no reconstruction in the Strip before Hamas is fully disarmed.”
The ISF is an integral part of the 20-point Trump Gaza plan and is envisioned as “a long-term internal security solution” for Gaza. Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania have expressed their commitment to deploy troops for the ISF, Reuters reported in February.
The diplomatic effort to advance the Board of Peace’s newly devised 15-point roadmap for Gaza has accelerated in recent weeks.
On Monday, U.S. special envoy Jared Kushner arrived in Israel to discuss the Gaza plan. Following a nearly four-hour meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Kushner said that demilitarizing Gaza could begin within 30 days, adding in an interview with Fox News that Washington would not support rebuilding Gaza before demilitarization.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Wednesday dismissed claims that Jerusalem had rejected the 15-point plan, saying that Hamas has yet to yield a single weapon.
“The point is what comes first: disarmament, or Israel moving,” Huckabee said in an interview with Saudi state-owned broadcaster Al Arabiya English, referring to a potential Israel Defense Forces withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
“How many guns has Hamas given up so far? The answer—zero,” the diplomat stated. “Not one. Not a pistol, not even so much as a slingshot. So until Hamas starts giving up weapons there’s no reason to expect Israel to change its posture.”
The IDF presently controls roughly half of the Gaza Strip, a territory referred to as the security zone.
Israeli security forces kill five terrorists in Gaza
Meanwhile, the IDF and Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet) struck terrorists at a civilian police station in northern Gaza on Wednesday. The security bodies said in a joint statement that the site was being used to plan attacks against Israeli troops.
At least four Hamas terrorists and a member of the Popular Resistance Committees were at the station in the Daraj Tuffah area when it was struck, according to the IDF, which said it was still assessing the results.
About half an hour earlier, the IDF killed a Hamas platoon commander in Nuseirat who according to the military had infiltrated Israel and participated in the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks.
In a separate statement on Wednesday, the IDF identified the four Hamas Nukhba terrorists killed in an Aug. 18 airstrike in the Al-Shati area of northern Gaza.
The terrorists were named as Muhammad Hamdi Ahmad Al-Masri, a company commander; Samed Samir Harb Abu Habal, a platoon commander who took part in the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre; Muhammad Attar, a platoon commander; and Muhammad Fathi Hussein Nasser, a platoon commander.
The terrorists were involved in planning and carrying out attacks against IDF troops in the Gaza Strip, the military said.
The IDF further said that “steps were taken to mitigate harm to civilians, including the use of precise munitions and aerial surveillance” before the terrorists were struck.
On Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that Israel’s policy for Gaza is to “remove threats, eliminate terrorists, and exact retribution from anyone who took part in the October 7 massacre.”
The IDF eliminated Hamas terrorists in Gaza earlier in the day and will “continue to act with force to protect our soldiers and ensure the peace for the southern communities—from within the security zone,” Katz added in Hebrew.
Washington raises $206 million for Gaza foreign force
The Trump administration notified Congress last month that it would provide more than $206 million for the planned ISF in Gaza, according to previously unreported documents obtained by Reuters and published on Wednesday.
The U.S. State Department plans to provide $200 million for equipment, infrastructure, vehicles and operating costs, while another roughly $6.3 million would repurpose nine U.S. armored personnel carriers for the force, initially earmarked for Albania and Kosovo.
The funding represents the first significant U.S. financial commitment to the force, whose deployment remains uncertain as Israel and Hamas remain at odds over Hamas’s disarmament and further Israeli withdrawals from Gaza.
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Israel has not approved the entry of an International Stabilization Force (ISF) into Gaza, with the Prime Minister's Office stating that reconstruction will not occur before Hamas is fully disarmed. This contradicts reports and emphasizes Israel's stance that disarmament must precede any rebuilding efforts. The ISF is a key component of the Trump Gaza plan, with several countries expressing commitment to deploy troops. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee reiterated that Hamas has not yielded any weapons, stating, "How many guns has Hamas given up so far? The answer—zero." Meanwhile, the IDF continues operations in Gaza, killing terrorists and striking sites used for planning attacks against Israeli troops. The U.S. has committed over $206 million in funding for the planned ISF, though its deployment remains uncertain due to ongoing disagreements regarding Hamas's disarmament and Israeli withdrawals.
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