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International troops could be deployed in the Gaza Strip as early as next month to form a U.N.-authorized stabilization force, two U.S. officials told Reuters, but it remains unclear how Palestinian militants Hamas will be disarmed.<\/strong><\/p>\n The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the International Stabilization Force (ISF) would not fight Hamas. They said lots of countries had expressed interest in contributing and U.S. officials are currently working out the size of the ISF, composition, housing, training and rules of engagement.<\/p>\n An American two-star general is being considered to lead the ISF but no decisions have been made, the officials said.<\/p>\n Deployment of the force is a key part of the next phase of U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s Gaza peace plan. Under the first phase, a fragile ceasefire in the two-year war began on October 10 and Hamas has released hostages and Israel has freed detained Palestinians.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a lot of quiet planning that\u2019s going on behind the scenes right now for phase two of the peace deal,\u201d White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday. \u201cWe want to ensure an enduring and lasting peace.\u201d<\/p>\n INDONESIA PREPARING TROOPS<\/strong><\/p>\n Indonesia has said it is prepared to deploy up to 20,000 troops to take on health and construction-related tasks in Gaza.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is still in the planning and preparation stages,\u201d said Rico Sirait, spokesperson of Indonesian Defence Ministry. \u201cWe are now preparing the organizational structure of the forces to be deployed.\u201d<\/p>\n Israel still controls 53% of Gaza, while nearly all the 2 million people in the enclave live in the remaining Hamas-held area. The plan \u2013 which needs to be finalized by the so-called Board of Peace \u2013 is for the ISF to deploy in the area held by Israel, the U.S. officials said.<\/p>\n Then, according to the Trump peace plan, as the ISF establishes control and stability, Israeli troops will gradually withdraw \u201cbased on standards, milestones, and timeframes linked to demilitarization.\u201d<\/p>\n A U.N. Security Council resolution adopted on November 17 authorized a Board of Peace and countries working with it to establish the ISF. Trump said on Wednesday that an announcement on which world leaders will serve on the Board of Peace will be made early next year.<\/p>\n DEMILITARIZING GAZA<\/strong><\/p>\n The Security Council authorized the ISF to work alongside newly trained and vetted Palestinian police to stabilize security \u201cby ensuring the process of demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, including the destruction and prevention of rebuilding of the military, terror, and offensive infrastructure, as well as the permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state armed groups.\u201d<\/p>\n However, it remains unclear exactly how that would work.<\/p>\n U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz noted on Thursday that the ISF was authorized by the Security Council to demilitarize Gaza by all means necessary \u2013 which means use of force.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously that\u2019ll be a conversation with each country,\u201d he told Israel\u2019s Channel 12, adding that discussions on rules of engagement were under way.<\/p>\n Hamas has said the issue of disarmament hasn\u2019t been discussed with them formally by the mediators \u2013 the U.S., Egypt and Qatar \u2013 and the group\u2019s stance remains that it will not disarm until a Palestinian state is established.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a speech on Sunday that the second phase would move toward demilitarization and disarmament.<\/p>\n \u201cNow that raises a question: Our friends in America want to try and establish a multinational task force to do the job,\u201d he said. \u201cI told them I welcome it. Are volunteers here? Be my guest,\u201d Netanyahu said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know there are certain tasks that this force can perform \u2026 but some things are beyond their abilities, and perhaps the main thing is beyond their abilities, but we will see about that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n