The central question of “Who will control Gaza?” is being answered by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He declared Sunday that Israel will control the makeup of the international force meant to secure the territory, a move backed by the United States.
“We have made it clear… Israel will determine which forces are unacceptable to us,” Netanyahu stated, just days after the Trump-brokered truce.
This demand comes as Hamas refuses to disarm. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio affirmed the US support, stating the force must be “countries that Israel’s comfortable with” and that Hamas must be excluded.
Netanyahu has already signaled this veto would be used to block Turkey.
The truce is unstable, facing challenges from an Israeli strike on Nuseirat and a slow return of hostage remains, which drew a warning from Trump.