As Trump admin pushes Gaza peace plan, history shows UN peacekeeping’s mixed record

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, presented a draught U.N. Security Council solution connected Wednesday to spouse nations aimed astatine advancing President Donald Trump’s Gaza bid plan, including authorization for an planetary information force, according to a elder U.S. official. 

Waltz precocious met with representatives from Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, who are expected to coordinate humanitarian and reconstruction efforts astir the proposal. The draught solution seeks to authorize a two-year planetary stabilization unit successful Gaza nether U.N. oversight — portion of what officials picture arsenic "phase two" of the broader postwar plan.

According to Reuters and the Associated Press, the draught would empower the ngo to "use each indispensable measures" to unafraid Gaza, support civilians and statesman the demilitarization of equipped groups erstwhile large-scale combat ends. The program includes forming a transitional "Board of Peace" to coordinate with Egypt, Israel and a vetted Palestinian constabulary force.

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Washington has ruled retired sending U.S. combat troops but has asked Muslim-majority countries, including Indonesia, Egypt, the U.A.E. and Turkey, to contribute. Israeli officials person already said they volition not let Turkish troops connected their borders.

The meeting, successful which the Palestinian Authority took part, marked a uncommon diplomatic engagement, notable due to the fact that the U.S. program envisioned handing authorization backmost to the PA aft reforms, a information Israel opposes, Axios reports.

Military vehicles are gathered adjacent the Israel-Gaza border, amid a ceasefire, successful confederate Israel connected Oct. 12, 2025. (Ammar Awad/Reuters)

In an interrogation with Fox News Digital, John Spencer, enforcement manager of the Urban Warfare Institute, said the conception tin enactment — but lone if it follows palmy precedents. "For Gaza, I personally would similar radical to deliberation Kosovo, not Lebanon," helium said. "History shows precisely what determines success: a wide mandate, capable troops and the authorization to act."

Kosovo: A exemplary of success

Polish soldiers, portion of the peacekeeping ngo successful Kosovo, defender a municipal gathering successful the municipality of Zvecan, bluish Kosovo, May 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Bojan Slavkovic)

After the 1999 NATO campaign, the Kosovo Force (KFOR) deployed nether U.N. Security Council Resolution 1244 with astir 50,000 troops to stabilize the region, abstracted combatants and rebuild governance.

"Kosovo gives you the champion example," Spencer said. "It had a wide disarmament mandate, a susceptible conjugation and capable troops to enforce peace."

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He warned that Gaza volition necessitate akin patience. "If idiosyncratic believes this volition conscionable vanish from the quality successful six months, that’s not reality," helium said, noting that KFOR remains successful spot decades later, albeit with less troops.

Bosnia: Mandate and mass

A pistillate mourns among graves successful Memorial Center Potocari, adjacent Srebrenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, connected July 11, 2015. (AP)

The 1995 Dayton Accords ended the Bosnian warfare and authorized the NATO-led Implementation Force (IFOR), followed by the Stabilization Force (SFOR). About 60,000 troops were deployed to enforce the peace, abstracted armies and enactment reconstruction.

"These were important forces with wide mandates for disarming," Spencer said. "That’s what occurrence looks similar — a ngo with some musculus and legitimacy."

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He added that Gaza’s ngo indispensable reflector Bosnia’s beardown bid operation and wide ineligible authority, not trust connected unarmed observers.

East Timor: Fast-track legitimacy

East Timorese rebel person Xanana Gusmao is embraced arsenic helium returns to the Armed Forces of National Liberation service campy aft his merchandise from an Indonesian situation successful the hills extracurricular of Dili, East Timor connected Oct. 24, 1999. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

In East Timor, an Australian-led ngo entered nether U.N. authorization successful 1999 aft post-independence violence. It restored bid and laid the groundwork for section governance.

"East Timor shows however rapidly you tin commencement rebuilding governance erstwhile the unit has legitimacy and section trust," Spencer said. "That legitimacy indispensable beryllium from time 1 successful Gaza."

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Lebanon: A cautionary tale

A subordinate of the UNIFIL unit patrols successful the confederate Lebanese colony of Borj El Mlouk, adjacent the borderline with Israel, connected Jan. 7, 2025. (Anwar Amro/AFP via Getty Images)

By contrast, the U.N. Interim Force successful Lebanon (UNIFIL), established successful 1978 and expanded aft the 2006 war, is what Spencer calls a failure.

"Southern Lebanon was not a occurrence story," helium said. "They were glorified observers without a mandate to demilitarize anything."

Israel has agelong criticized UNIFIL for allowing Hezbollah to entrench nether its watch. Spencer said the aforesaid mistake cannot beryllium repeated successful Gaza. "It has to beryllium seen arsenic liberating areas from militant rule, not occupying them," helium said.

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Lessons for Gaza

Destroyed buildings successful Gaza, arsenic seen from the Israeli broadside of the border, July 28, 2025. (Reuters)

Spencer described an "inkblot strategy" — stabilizing cleared districts portion combat continues elsewhere. "You tin make harmless areas wherever a stabilization force, nether the close mandate and equipped correctly, is stabilizing areas portion you are besides conducting operations against Hamas," helium said.

He predicts that the Israel Defense Forces volition proceed high-intensity operations portion the planetary unit focuses connected humanitarian aid, demining and restoring bid successful secured zones. "Part of the acquisition is giving radical a imaginativeness of beingness aft Hamas," Spencer said.

During a caller sojourn to Gaza, Spencer said helium saw "a glimmer of hope" successful recently established humanitarian zones wrong cleared areas. "If you commencement quickly, adjacent connected a tiny scale, occurrence builds success," helium said.

About 200 U.S. unit are already connected the crushed successful a civil-military coordination halfway managing logistics and readying for the projected modulation successful Israel. Spencer said this tiny beingness volition beryllium captious to coordinating aid, reconstruction and stabilization without engaging successful combat.

He warned that the ngo volition look disinformation and attacks from groups opposed to peace. "There are radical who bash not privation this to succeed," helium said. "Thinking done however they’ll effort to undermine it — particularly online — is vital."

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He added that stabilization indispensable determination alongside section capacity-building. "You person to commencement grooming a vetted Palestinian constabulary unit and governance team," helium said. "That’s however you physique legitimacy."