America and the Zionist Regime's Attempt to Omit UNRWA and Turkey

TEHRAN (Defapress) - Following the strong opposition of the Zionist regime, the Turkish armed forces are withdrawing from the 5,000-strong peacekeeping force that is to be deployed in the Gaza Strip after the war.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the formation of this multinational force requires Israel's consent regarding the nationality of its members. This force is to prevent a security vacuum after the war and play a role in the reconstruction process in Gaza.

Tensions between Israel and Turkey have increased in recent years, especially over the Syrian issue, and Benjamin Netanyahu considers Recep Tayyip Erdogan to be too close to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. However, Turkey’s exclusion from the mission would be controversial, as Ankara is one of the guarantors of Trump’s 20-point ceasefire agreement and the Turkish army is considered one of the most capable Muslim armed forces.

Opening of the US military coordination center in the occupied territories

The peacekeeping force is likely to be led by Egypt, with Indonesia and the UAE also participating. These countries want the peacekeeping force to operate with a formal UN Security Council authorization, even if it is not officially a UN peacekeeping force.

The force is to operate in full coordination with a US-led military center, located in the southern Israeli city of Kiryat Gat, which was opened on Tuesday by US Vice President JD Vance. The center is staffed by advisers from the UK, France, Jordan, and the UAE, and is also tasked with distributing humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The main task of the force is said to be to disarm Hamas and ensure the formation of a Palestinian transitional government; however, topics are highly controversial.

Hamas and Fatah agree to transfer power to technocrats

The Israeli prime minister has ruled out the Palestinian Authority’s participation in the post-war administration of Gaza. Still, on Friday, delegations from Hamas and Fatah, led by Khalil al-Hayya and Hussein al-Sheikh, met in Egypt to discuss post-war arrangements in the Gaza Strip.

“The two groups agreed at the Cairo meeting that the administration of the Gaza Strip would be handed over to a temporary committee of independent technocrats that would manage life and basic services in cooperation with Arab countries and international institutions,” a joint statement on the Hamas website said.

Hamas also said it had received clear guarantees from mediators about the end of the war.

Tensions Rise Between Turkey and Israel

A Turkish rescue team sent to the region to recover Palestinian and Israeli bodies was stopped at the Egyptian-Gaza border on Thursday, waiting for Israeli permission to enter, a matter that highlights tensions between Tel Aviv and Ankara. The 81-member team from the Turkish Crisis Management Organization is equipped with life-searching devices and trained dogs.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Erdogan called for more US pressure on Israel through sanctions and an arms embargo so that the regime can adhere to its commitments in the Trump plan.

US and Israeli Efforts to Eliminate UNRWA

Marco Rubio also announced that the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) should not play a role in Gaza, because he believes it is a subsidiary of Hamas.

Rubio's statements contradict the positions of many European countries, the UN, and the International Court of Justice (ICJ). In its recent advisory opinion, the body declared that UNRWA was an irreplaceable instrument for distributing aid to Gaza.

The ICJ also said that Israel had failed to provide evidence of Hamas’ influence in UNRWA.

The joint US-Israeli opposition to UNRWA poses a serious challenge to the UN, as Trump, while acknowledging the UN’s role in distributing aid in his 20-point plan, appears intent on abandoning UNRWA, the main aid agency in Gaza. The UN must now decide whether to stand up to Trump.

Norway, which raised the issue in the UN General Assembly last December, which led to the ICJ’s advisory opinion, has said it is drafting a resolution based on the court’s key findings, including an obligation for Israel not to restrict aid to Gaza.

Violation of the ceasefire by banning humanitarian aid

According to the Trump ceasefire plan, which Israel also accepted, 600 aid trucks were supposed to enter Gaza daily. However, since the agreement, only 89 trucks have entered Gaza daily on average (equivalent to 14 percent of the agreed amount).

UNRWA also criticized Israel in a statement for the escalation of violence in the West Bank, writing: “Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, the West Bank, which has been under Israeli occupation since 1967, including East Quds, has witnessed a sharp increase in violence, and families live in fear and insecurity. The process of annexation of the West Bank continues unabated, in clear violation of international law. This process must stop. The future of Gaza and the West Bank is one.”

“I felt like I was driving through the ruins of Hiroshima, Stalingrad, or Dresden,” said Tom Fletcher, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, about his recent trip to Gaza.