African Officers Visit US Base in Israel Amid Pressure to Advance Gaza Stabilization Plan

Senior military officers from Uganda and Burundi visited the American command center in Kiryat Gat, Israel, on Monday as part of ongoing efforts to form a multinational stabilization force in Gaza. Both African countries have given preliminary approval to send troops to the Gaza Strip under the International Stabilization Force (ISF), a key element of former US President Donald Trump's 20-point plan to end the Gaza conflict. During their visit, the officers met with US and Israeli Defense Forces representatives who briefed them on the operational plans for Gaza.

This visit comes amid intense diplomatic pressure from the US administration on Israel to implement the second phase of Trump's peace plan. Jared Kushner, Trump's envoy, and Nikolay Mladenov, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, visited Israel on the same day to urge Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to begin executing the plan, emphasizing the necessity of disarming Hamas. Kushner had met the previous day in Cairo with Hamas representatives and officials from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey.

The US is also working to recruit additional countries for the ISF, with Morocco selected to train the force and ongoing talks with Kosovo, Albania, and Kazakhstan. Indonesia, previously reported as a potential contributor, currently does not intend to send troops, prompting the US to seek more African participants. Trump's 20-point plan, announced in September 2023, includes establishing a temporary international stabilization force involving the US, Arab states, Egypt, and Jordan to collaborate with Palestinian police in Gaza and secure the borders. Meanwhile, Hamas has insisted on its political survival as a condition for the next phase, despite Netanyahu's statements. Preparations for phase two of the Gaza operation continue at the Kiryat Gat command center.