The US is reportedly exploring a plan for a vast military base housing thousands of forces along Gaza’s border with the occupied Palestinian territories amid fears of further American regional adventurism and desire to help the Israeli regime control the territory’s future.
Reporting on Tuesday, Israeli investigative outlet Shomrim said the facility bears a $500-million price tag.
The outpost would also give Washington the ability to act independently on the ground needless of Israeli coordination and shape dynamics directly.
Observers noted that the plan comes while global outrage at the regime over its war of genocide on Gaza that began in October 2023, has come to a head. This, they added, has potentially triggered Tel Aviv to ask its allies to advance its goals as it temporarily steps out of the spotlight.
Palestinian officials have, however, warned that such steps represented an effort to replace one occupation with another, merely swapping Israeli boots for foreign ones.
In early November, Mousa Abu Marzouk, a senior leader of Gaza’s Hamas resistance movement, made it clear that the group would never tolerate such an arrangement.
“We cannot accept a military force that would be a substitute for the occupation army in Gaza,” he told Al Jazeera.
Earlier, Washington had circulated a draft UN Security Council resolution proposing creation of a so-called “International Stabilization Force (ISF)” in Gaza for at least two years.
The force, reportedly to be formed by the US, Turkey, Qatar, and Egypt, would operate under the pretext of reconstruction and security, while effectively ensuring the “demilitarization” of Gaza and the dismantling of the resistance infrastructure.
According to American outlet Axios, the ISF plan represents part of the first phase of a 20-point proposal designed by Donald Trump, who claims it will “end the war” in Gaza.
Critics have, however, argued that the proposal ignores the core issues of Israeli occupation, accountability for war crimes, and Palestinians’ right to self-determination and compensation.
Abu Marzouk also revealed that Washington and Tel Aviv had opposed allowing the Security Council to officially mandate such a mission.
Meanwhile, the US has already opened a smaller Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) in the city of Kiryat Gat, north of Gaza, described by US Central Command officials as a hub for “humanitarian and military coordination.”
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a visit there, vowed that “disarming Hamas and demilitarizing Gaza will be achieved.”
Hamas has said its weapons are intrinsically linked to the occupation’s existence, which necessitates that resistance fighters remain constantly on alert for any potential large-scale aggression against Gaza.
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