Gaza | Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has been invited to be a part of the Gaza “Board of Peace” that is being formed by United States President Donald Trump, the Foreign Office has said. “The prime minister of Pakistan has received the invitation from the president of the United States to join the Board of Peace on Gaza,” said FO spokesperson Tahir Andrabi in response to media queries. “Pakistan will remain engaged with international efforts for peace and security in Gaza, leading to a lasting solution to the Palestine issue in accordance with United Nations resolutions,” he added. The so-called “Board of Peace” has begun to take shape as the US moves on to the second phase of Trump’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza, which stands decimated after two years of Israel’s bombardment. Trump had already declared himself the chair of the body, as he promotes a controversial vision of economic development in the Palestinian territory. The United States has invited the heads of around 60 states to join the Board of Peace, including those...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a meeting of his ruling coalition partners on Sunday after objecting to the composition of a Gaza advisory panel formed by the White House, according to an official and media reports. The White House announced this week the setting up of a “Gaza Executive Board,” which would operate under a broader so-called “Board of Peace” to be chaired by US President Donald Trump as part of his 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza. The executive board, described as having an advisory role, includes Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Qatari diplomat Ali Al-Thawadi, alongside other regional and international officials. Late on Saturday, Netanyahu’s office objected to the composition of the executive board. “The announcement regarding the composition of the Gaza Executive Board, which is subordinate to the Board of Peace, was not coordinated with Israel and runs contrary to its policy,” the office of Netanyahu said. “The prime minister has instructed the foreign affair...

MORE than three months since the ceasefire in Gaza took effect, the second phase of President Donald Trump’s peace plan for the occupied Palestinian territory has been launched. Among the features of this phase is the announcement of the so-called Gaza ‘Board of Peace’, which the American leader will head. Other luminaries serving on this body include his son-in-law Jared Kushner, administration staffers Marco Rubio and Steve Witkoff and former British prime minister Tony Blair, among others. In Mr Trump’s own words, this “is the Greatest and Most Prestigious Board ever assembled”. Meanwhile, a serving American general has been named to head the International Stabilisation Force, which is supposed to oversee security and disarmament in Gaza, while Ali Shaath, an ex-Palestinian Authority official, is to head the Gaza governance committee. All the hyperbole notwithstanding, it remains to be seen whether these interim governing structures will succeed in addressing the still dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, ...

US President Donald Trump’s so-called “Board of Peace” for post-war Gaza began to take shape on Saturday, with the leaders of Egypt, Turkiye, Argentina and Canada asked to join. The announcements from those leaders came after the US president named his Secretary of State Marco Rubio, former British prime minister Tony Blair, and senior negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff to the panel. Trump had already declared himself the chair of the body, as he promotes a controversial vision of economic development in the Palestinian territory, which lies in rubble after two-plus years of relentless Israeli bombardment. The moves came after a Palestinian committee of technocrats meant to govern Gaza held its first meeting in Cairo which was attended by Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law who has partnered with Witkoff for months on the issue. In Canada, a senior aide to Prime Minister Mark Carney said he intended to accept Trump’s invitation, while in Turkiye, a spokesman for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he had bee...

The question of whether Pakistan should contribute troops to an International Stabilisation Force (ISF) in Gaza cannot be answered through sentiment, symbolism or geopolitical realignments.

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he was backing the newly appointed “Palestinian Technocratic Government” in Gaza, where Washington has announced the launch of a second phase in a ceasefire that went into effect in October but remains fragile. “I am backing a newly appointed Palestinian Technocratic Government, the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, supported by the Board’s High Representative, to govern Gaza during its transition,” Trump said on social media. Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas signed off in October on Trump’s plan, which says the Palestinian technocratic body will be overseen by an international so-called “Board of Peace” that is meant to supervise Gaza’s governance for a transitional period. In another post, Trump said the “Board of Peace,” of which Trump himself is the chair, was formed, and its members would be announced shortly. Israel and Hamas have accused each other of ceasefire violations in Gaza, where, since the start of the truce in October, over 440 ...

United States President Donald Trump’s envoy said on Wednesday that a ceasefire plan for Gaza was now entering its second phase with the goal of disarming Hamas, despite several Israeli strikes in the Palestinian territory during the truce that became effective in October last year. “We are announcing the launch of phase two of the president’s 20-Point plan to End the Gaza conflict, moving from ceasefire to demilitarisation, technocratic governance, and reconstruction,” envoy Steve Witkoff wrote on X. The second phase will also include the setup of a 15-person Palestinian technocratic committee to administer postwar Gaza. Its formation was announced earlier on Wednesday by Egypt, a close US ally and mediator. Phase two “begins the full demilitarisation and reconstruction of Gaza, primarily the disarmament of all unauthorised personnel”. “The US expects Hamas to comply fully with its obligations, including the immediate return of the final deceased hostage. Failure to do so will bring serious consequences,” Wi...

Azerbaijan has no intention of sending a contingent of its troops to take part in peacekeeping operations outside its borders, including in Gaza, President Ilham Aliyev said late on Monday. Aliyev, interviewed by Azeri television channels, said Azerbaijan had been in contact with Donald Trump’s US administration with a list of questions about the operation of a peacekeeping force in Gaza, the proposed International Stabilisation Force (ISF). “We prepared a questionnaire of more than 20 questions and provided it to the American side. No participation in peacekeeping forces is envisaged,” Aliyev said. “I am not considering participation in hostilities outside Azerbaijan at all.” An Azeri government source had said last November that Azerbaijan would provide no troops for such an operation unless there was a complete halt to fighting between Israel and Hamas. Meanwhile, diplomats involved in the discussions told Dawn on Monday that despite deep reservations and fears of domestic backlash, most Muslim-majority co...

WASHINGTON: A fresh round of diplomatic talks on the formation of a proposed International Stabilisation Force (ISF) in Gaza is expected to be held in a Middle Eastern capital in the coming days, diplomatic sources told Dawn as Muslim countries, including Pakistan, continue to press for clarity on the force’s mandate, operational scope, and political objectives. The ISF, a central element of a US-brokered Gaza peace plan, is envisioned to stabilise the territory following over two years of Israeli atrocities in the Gaza Strip, protect civilians and humanitarian corridors, and assist in establishing transitional governance through a proposed “Board of Peace”. However, several core issues remain unresolved, including the force’s legal authority, chain of command, funding, duration, and whether it would play a role in disarming Hamas or other Palestinian groups. Pakistan, Indonesia, Egypt, and other states have expressed willingness to participate in a stabilisation effort that genuinely restores order and facil...

Eight Muslim-majority countries, including Pakistan, on Friday expressed concern at the “deteriorating” humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip — exacerbated by severe weather conditions — and stressed the need to immediately initiate and scale up early recovery efforts. In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Qatar, Indonesia, Jordan, Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), expressed their “deepest concern” at the humanitarian situation in Gaza. These countries had also worked with US President Donald Trump’s administration last year on a plan to end Israel’s genocide and invasion in Gaza. A fragile ceasefire has been in place in Gaza since October as a result of the effort, with Israel violating the truce multiple times by carrying out attacks in the Gaza Strip. Last month, the UN International Organisation for Migration had said that hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians were facing flooding of their tents and shelters due to heavy rains, and materials...

Medical charity Doctors Without Borders, known by its French acronym MSF, expects to be barred from operating in Gaza once it misses Wednesday’s deadline to comply with new registration rules for relief agencies that Israel claims are meant to prevent Hamas from exploiting international aid. The organisation, which provided care to nearly half a million people during a two-year Gaza Strip war, says deregistration would cut off life-saving medical assistance for hundreds of thousands in the Palestinian enclave. COGAT, the Israeli military agency that coordinates aid, said MSF had refused to provide Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Ministry with a list of its employees as required. The Diaspora Affairs Ministry claims individuals affiliated with MSF have links to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. MSF rejects the accusations as unsubstantiated. When asked, MSF did not state if it had provided names. In May, aid agency Oxfam said the requirement to share staff details raised protection concerns, following attacks on ...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived at US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence on Monday to hold crucial talks on Gaza and Iran. The US president will push the Israeli leader to move to the next stage of his fragile Gaza truce plan. Netanyahu is also expected to try to shift some focus onto Iran, amid reports he will call for more US strikes on the Islamic republic’s nuclear program. The meeting, the fifth between the two leaders to be held in the United States this year, comes as some White House officials fear both Israel and Hamas are slow-walking the second phase of their ceasefire. Trump, who said Netanyahu had asked for the talks, is reportedly keen to announce as soon as January a Palestinian technocratic government for Gaza, and the deployment of an international stabilisation force. Netanyahu’s office said he met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Florida ahead of his talks with Trump, which are scheduled for 1pm (1800 GMT). Israeli governme...

Pope Leo decried conditions for Palestinians in Gaza in his Christmas sermon on Thursday, in an unusually direct appeal during what is normally a solemn, spiritual service on the day Christians across the globe celebrate the birth of Jesus. Leo, the first US pope, said the story of Jesus being born in a stable showed that God had “pitched his fragile tent” among the people of the world. “How, then, can we not think of the tents in Gaza, exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold?” he asked. Leo, celebrating his first Christmas after being elected in May by the world’s cardinals to succeed the late Pope Francis, has a more quiet, diplomatic style than his predecessor and usually refrains from making political references in his sermons. But the new pope has also lamented the conditions for Palestinians in Gaza several times recently and told journalists last month that the only solution in the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people must include a Palestinian state. Israel and Hamas agreed...

The United States (US) is facing a delicate balancing act in defining the mandate for a proposed International Stabilisation Force (ISF) in Gaza. Any plan must address the concerns of potential troop-contributing countries while also satisfying Israel’s security demands — a combination that has so far proven elusive. As diplomats gathered this week in Doha and Miami, it became clear that clarity on legal authority, rules of engagement, and operational responsibilities is a prerequisite for any country, particularly Muslim-majority nations, to commit troops. Until these questions are resolved, phase two of the Gaza peace plan risks remaining largely a blueprint on paper rather than an actionable plan. Consultations in Doha and Miami Earlier this week, the United States and its partners convened a conference in Doha, Qatar, bringing together representatives from more than two dozen countries to discuss key aspects of the ISF, including leadership, rules of engagement, and operational structure. The meeting, how...

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday disclosed that Pakistan had accepted inclusion in the proposed International Stabilisation Force (ISF) for Gaza, while stopping short of confirming a firm troop commitment. Last Tuesday, Pakistan attended a conference in Qatar, which was hosted by US Central Command, to discuss the ISF’s command structure and other unresolved operational issues. Pakistan was among nearly 45 countries attending the meeting. Responding to a question on whether Washington had received Pakistan’s consent to deploy troops for peacebuilding in Gaza, Rubio said the United States was “very grateful to Pakistan for their offer to be a part of it, or at least their offer to consider being a part of it,” adding that further clarity was still required before any country could be asked to formally commit. “I feel very confident that we have a number of nation-states acceptable to all sides of this who are willing to step forward and be a part of that stabilisation force and certainly, Pakistan i...

More than 1,000 patients have died while waiting for urgent medical evacuation from war-ravaged Gaza in the last year and a half, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Friday. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X that the UN agency and its partners had “evacuated over 10,600 patients from Gaza with severe health conditions, including over 5,600 children” since the start of the war more than two years ago. But he warned that “many more patients remain in Gaza awaiting evacuation to receive appropriate healthcare”. Citing numbers from the health ministry in Gaza, Tedros said that 1,092 patients were known to have died while awaiting medical evacuation just between July 2024 and November 28, 2025. “This figure is likely underreported,” he warned, calling on “more countries to open doors to patients from Gaza, and for medical evacuation to the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to be restored”. “Lives depend on it.” The WHO has previously estimated that more than 16,500 patients still need treat...

• FO says discussions ongoing; Islamabad has not been formally requested to deploy troops • Andrabi, White House say no Munir-Trump meeting planned ‘at this time’ ISLAMABAD: No decision has been taken yet on contributing troops to the planned International Stabilisation Force (ISF) for Gaza, the Foreign Office said on Thursday, seeking to quell renewed speculation about Washington’s pressure on Islamabad for joining the mission. “About Pakistan’s participation in the ISF, we have not taken a decision to participate in ISF as yet,” Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said at the weekly media briefing. ISF forms a key component of US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the Gaza conflict, a 20-point framework announced in September that facilitated a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in October. On Nov 17, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution, with Russia and China abstaining, endorsing the plan and authorising the establishment of the ISF as a temporary multinational force to...

• International Stabilisation Force ‘won’t fight Hamas’; Indonesia says it is preparing to deploy 20,000 troops for health, construction-related tasks • Muslim bloc foreign ministers back UNRWA amid talk of ‘terror designation’ WASHINGTON: International troops could be deployed in the Gaza Strip as early as next month to form a UN-authorised stabilisation force, two US officials told Reuters, but it remains unclear how Hamas will be disarmed. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the International Stabilisation Force (ISF) would not fight Hamas. They said lots of countries had expressed interest in contributing and US officials are currently working out the size of the ISF, composition, housing, training and rules of engagement. An American two-star general is being considered to lead the ISF but no decisions have been made, the officials said. Deployment of the force is a key part of the next phase of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan. Under the first phase, a fragile ceasefire in...

International troops could be deployed in the Gaza Strip as early as next month to form a UN-authorized stabilisation force, two US officials told Reuters, but it remains unclear how Palestinian Hamas fighters will be disarmed. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the International Stabilisation Force (ISF) would not fight Hamas. They said lots of countries had expressed interest in contributing and US officials are currently working out the size of the ISF, composition, housing, training and rules of engagement. An American two-star general is being considered to lead the ISF but no decisions have been made, the officials said. A displaced Palestinian man clears muddy water in a flooded tent camp on a rainy day in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, December 12, 2025. —Reuters Deployment of the force is a key part of the next phase of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan. Under the first phase, a fragile ceasefire in the two-year war began on October 10 and Hamas has released hostages and...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that the second phase of a US plan to end Tel Aviv’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza was close, but cautioned several key issues still needed to be resolved, including whether a multinational security force would be deployed. Netanyahu, speaking to reporters alongside German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Jerusalem, said that he would hold important discussions with US President Donald Trump at the end of the month on how to ensure the plan’s second phase was achieved. The prime minister’s office in November said that Trump had invited Netanyahu to the White House “in the near future”, although a date for the visit has not yet been made public. Netanyahu said that he would discuss with Trump how to bring an end to Hamas rule in Gaza. Israel and Hamas entered a ceasefire two months ago, but Israel has continued its bombardment of Gaza, killing Palestinians, as the death toll in the besieged enclave reached over 72,300 as of November 19, 2o25. Gaza’s ...