Hamas signaled resistance Friday to key elements of President Donald Trump's Gaza peace initiative, underscoring the fragility of efforts to secure a lasting truce after two years of devastating war with Israel.
Speaking to AFP, Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the group would accept international peacekeeping forces to monitor a ceasefire in Gaza but rejected any role that would involve interference in the enclave's "internal affairs."
"Our position on international forces is clear," Qassem said.
"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," he said.
The remarks came one day after the inaugural meeting of Trump's newly formed "Board of Peace" in Washington, where officials unveiled plans for an International Stabilization Force (ISF) for Gaza.
The proposed force would include 20,000 soldiers and a new police contingent aimed at securing the territory and supporting postwar governance.
Morocco announced it was prepared to contribute police and troops, while ISF commander Major General Jasper Jeffers said Albania, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, and Kosovo had also pledged personnel. Indonesia has indicated it could send up to 8,000 troops.
At the meeting, U.S.-appointed high representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov also announced the start of recruitment for a post-Hamas Palestinian police force — a move widely seen as part of a broader effort to sideline the terrorist group's governing authority in Gaza.
Qassem suggested Hamas could accept the training of Palestinian police "within their national framework" to maintain internal security but warned against any arrangement that would undermine the group's control or alter Gaza's political structure.
The Board of Peace was established following an October ceasefire brokered by the Trump administration alongside longtime regional mediators Qatar and Egypt.
While the truce halted active hostilities, the latest dispute highlights persistent divisions over who will govern and secure Gaza, a central obstacle that has repeatedly derailed attempts at a durable peace between Israel and Hamas.
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