Displaced Palestinians walk past the destroyed Al-Huda Mosque in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. (February 20, 2026)
Hamas says open to Gaza peacekeeping force, but rejects “interference”
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- Hamas expressed openness to international peacekeeping forces provided they act solely as a buffer to monitor the ceasefire, while explicitly rejecting any interference in Gaza's internal governance or affairs.
- At the "Board of Peace" meeting in Washington, President Trump announced over $7 billion in reconstruction pledges and detailed a 20,000-troop stabilization force, with Indonesia serving as deputy commander alongside contributors like Morocco and Kazakhstan.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told AFP on Friday that the Palestinian movement was open to international peacekeeping forces in Gaza, but rejected any interference in the territory's "internal affairs".
"Our position on international forces is clear: we want peacekeeping forces that monitor the ceasefire, ensure its implementation, and act as a buffer between the occupation army and our people in the Gaza Strip, without interfering in Gaza's internal affairs," Qassem said.
He added that training Palestinian police forces within a national framework would be acceptable to maintain internal security and counter what he described as chaos driven by ‘Israel’ and affiliated militias.
Washington meeting outlines post-war plans
The first meeting of the Board of Peace, established to support Gaza’s reconstruction, was held Thursday in Washington, DC.
Discussions focused on financing reconstruction efforts and deploying foreign forces to stabilize the territory after two years of a devastating ‘Israeli’ assault.
During the meeting, US President Donald Trump said several countries, most of them from the Gulf, had pledged more than seven billion dollars for Gaza’s reconstruction.
Proposed stabilization force takes shape
The meeting also outlined a US-led stabilization force expected to include up to 20,000 troops, among them 8,000 from Indonesia.
US General Jasper Jeffers announced that Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, would serve as deputy commander of the force.
He added that Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, and Albania had also pledged to contribute troops.
