Egypt, favorite to lead an international stabilization force in Gaza. The plan also features a former Western leader targeted for a key role in the new peace council

A UN Security Council resolution, backed by Europe and the United States, to give the future international stabilization force firm powers to oversee security in the Gaza Strip is in the works, diplomats said, with the clear expectation that Egypt will take over its leadership, The Guardian notes.

The United States insists that this force have a UN mandate, but not a classic peacekeeping mission under the auspices of the UN, and operate with similar duties to the international troops deployed in Haiti to combat armed gangs.

Turkey, Indonesia and Azerbaijan are, along with Egypt, counted as the main troop contributors.

Egypt is still being consulted on the possibility of the force being a fully UN-led operation.

No European or British troops are expected to take part, but Britain has sent advisers to a small US-operated cell inside Israel that is working to implement the second phase of US President Donald Trump's 20-point plan.

Britain emphasizes that the ultimate goal is the creation of a Palestinian state, which must ultimately be seen as a single territory including the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

London already trains a contingent of Palestinian police, but the proposal would see the international force take the lead role in security.

If this force proves effective, Israel will continue its withdrawal. However, Israeli authorities insist they will maintain a large buffer zone under Israeli control to protect themselves from further attacks by Hamas.

Hamas disarmament, the “most difficult” stage

British diplomats admit disarming Hamas will be the most difficult stage and say Britain is contributing ideas inspired by the process in Northern Ireland, where IRA weapons and those controlled by Protestant groups were decommissioned, including through an independent verification body.

Hamas is likely to hand over weapons only to a Palestinian-led entity to avoid the perception of a capitulation, but third parties could be used to verify the process with Israel. The process will most likely begin with the decommissioning of Hamas' heavy weaponry and rocket launchers, while the much more sensitive issue of individual weapons held by Hamas brigades would be postponed.

Tony Blair targeted for key role in future 'peace council'

Britain appears to fully support the idea of ​​former Prime Minister Tony Blair being part of a council called in Trump's plan “board of peace” which would oversee the work of a committee of 15 Palestinian technocrats.

Tony Blair, accused of destabilizing the Middle East with his support for the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, received influential support from the current Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani.

“Tony Blair is a person accepted by the Iraqis and a friend, given that he contributed, along with President Bush, to the decision to go to war and overthrow the regime of Saddam Hussein. He is a good friend of the Iraqis, he visits us often and I have meetings with him. We certainly wish him success in this mission and we will support him,” the Iraqi leader said in an interview with CNBC.

Blair's place in the council to be led by Donald Trump is expected to be clarified in the second week of November, when Egypt hosts in Cairo a major conference on the reconstruction of Gaza, aimed at mobilizing an international fund of donors and private financing. The United Kingdom believes that the amount needed, estimated at more than $67 billion (about £50 billion), is so large that it will require both private investment and contributions from the Gulf states.

Palestinian Authority says it is 'in a real process of state formation'

Officials acknowledge that the exact relationship between the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the peace council needs to be clarified.

Next Wednesday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague is expected to rule against Israel for cutting off all cooperation with UN humanitarian aid agencies, including the main Palestinian agency, Unrwa.

The request for an ICJ advisory opinion, initiated by Norway and backed by a UN Security Council resolution, will give the judges an opportunity to reaffirm that Israel, as the occupying power, has a legal obligation to provide aid to the people of Gaza, an obligation it has allegedly failed to comply with.

Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Varsen Aghabekian said the PA had learned from past mistakes and was now in a real process of state formation. Speaking at a conference in Naples organized by the Italian think tank IPSI, she said one of the most important changes was related to the school curriculum.

However, he added: “We can develop that curriculum to the highest standards in the world, but if the students who learn it continue to live under an oppressive occupation, will that give them a perspective of peace? No. What will give them a narrative of peace, and make them internalize it, is when children no longer face checkpoints, humiliation, uprooted trees, burning farms and fathers on a daily basis killed.”