Gaza governing body expected to be announced soon amid 'colonialism' concerns

A new governing body and international security force in Gaza is in the final stages of being formed and could be announced before year-end as part of phase two of Washington's "peace plan."

Citing American sources, Israel’s Channel 12 News reported that plans were at a "fairly advanced stage" and that US President Donald Trump’s administration was planning to announce them ahead of Christmas.

The report said that the governing body for Gaza will be led by a "Board of Peace" which will be chaired personally by Trump and include 10 other foreign leaders and officials.

Channel 12 added that between 12 and 15 Palestinian technocrats who are not linked to Hamas or any other Palestinian faction, will make up an executive committee.

Israel has rejected any future authority in Gaza that will see Hamas run the territory again. It has also rejected any role for Hamas's rival Fatah which dominates the West Bank based Palestinian Authority.

Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007 following a conflict with Fatah.

Citing two US officials and a third Western official, American news site Axios also said that Trump plans to announce the start of the second phase before the end of 2025, which would include revealing the new governing body.

Axios said that Israel, under US pressure, has agreed to reopen the Rafah border crossing – under Israeli control since May 2024 – to allow Palestinians to leave Gaza for Egypt.

The Axios report added that Israel, Egypt, and the US are holding discussions on security arrangements that would enable Palestinians to return from Egypt to Gaza too, amid growing Egyptian concerns that opening the crossing in only one direction carries real risks of facilitating a "soft" displacement of the Palestinians, in the absence of any guarantees for their return to the enclave.

Throughout the two-year war, Cairo has repeatedly warned Israel against any plans to forcibly displace the population of the Gaza Strip into Egypt, as several far-right Israeli officials have called for a full annexation of the territory and repopulating it with Israeli settlers.

Preparations for the security arrangements have reached advanced stages, and everything is moving forward, a Western source familiar with the matter told Axios.

'Neo-colonial' Board of Peace

According to the US officials, the "Board of Peace" to be led by Trump will include an international executive council that will be comprised of former UK prime minister Tony Blair, Trump advisers Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, and senior officials from other countries.

Palestinians have blasted the plan as a form of neo-colonialism which aims to bring Gaza under foreign control.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to meet with Trump before the end of the year to discuss the second phase of the Gaza plan. Trump reportedly told Netanyahu during a phone call on Monday that he expects him to be "a better partner" regarding Gaza.

The second phase of the agreement stipulates the withdrawal of Israeli forces from additional areas of Gaza, the deployment of an international stabilisation force, and the formation of the new governing body.

It also calls for the disarmament of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza – something Israel has threatened to do by force if Hamas refuses.

Axios reported that the US, Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey are holding talks with Hamas to reach an agreement that would see the group relinquish governing authority in Gaza and begin a disarmament process. The proposal, it added, calls for Hamas to first surrender its heavy weapons, then proceed to dismantle its light weapons.

It remains unclear whether the Palestinian movement will agree to the plan.

The first stage of Trump’s ceasefire plan for Gaza which began eight weeks ago has seen Israel release just under 2,000 Palestinian detainees in return for 20 living Israeli captives and the bodies of 27 others captured on 7 October 2023. Only one deceased captive remains in Gaza.

The total number of detainees released by Israel represents less than 20 percent of the Palestinian prisoners its holds, amid fears that Palestinian detainees are being tortured, raped, and starved in Israel. The remains of only one more captives are yet to be returned to Israel by Hamas.

The first phase was also meant to see the entry of more humanitarian aid into the Strip but Israel continues to stop aid deliveries, amid continued hunger in Gaza, and fears for displaced people as winter sets in. Israeli attacks have also continued and killed over 360 people since the ceasefire began.

More than 70,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have been killed in the war since October 2023.