Israel approves first phase of International Peacekeeping Plan for Gaza

Israel's security cabinet approved the legal framework to allow the International Stabilization Force (ISF) to enter the Gaza Strip, local media reported.

The ISF is part of US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace and is to provide international peacekeeping troops in the strip to maintain order, CE Report quotes MIA.

The approval comes ahead of a planned meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump in Washington on Tuesday.

The entry of an initial international peacekeeping force as part of Trump's 20-point plan for Gaza, into a limited area in Rafah, was approved by the cabinet, the Haaretz newspaper reported.

The Board of Peace's lead envoy for Gaza, Nickolay Mladenov, said the Israeli approval was a "critical part of the agreed framework for stabilizing Gaza, supporting demilitarization, and enabling the transition to effective Palestinian transitional administration," he wrote on X.

"The focus now in on ensuring that we move forward with the 20-point Plan for Gaza."

The first phase of the plan is a pilot project in Rafah where temporary housing will be constructed to house Palestinians, the Jerusalem Post and ynet reported.

According to the reports, anyone wishing to live in the area will undergo strict vetting procedures to ensure they are not identified with or connected to the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.

Following a ceasefire deal in October, Trump established the Board of Peace as part of a peace plan following two years of war between Israel and Hamas.

The body is designed to oversee reconstruction and security in the Gaza Strip.

Photo: Pexels (Free Stock Photos)