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Palestinian resistance factions have rejected a U.S. draft resolution proposing an international stabilisation force in the Gaza Strip, warning it seeks to impose external control over the territory and undermine Palestinian sovereignty.
The joint statement, issued ahead of a scheduled United Nations Security Council vote on the draft, described the plan as paving the way for “foreign guardianship” over Gaza and sidelining Palestinian decision-making.
They insisted that any humanitarian or security effort must operate through Palestinian institutions, under full UN oversight, and without becoming a political instrument or security apparatus.
The factions rejected any clause that would involve disarmament in Gaza or divert from their internationally recognised right to resist occupation.
They also criticised language in the draft resolution that they say would turn aid into leverage, weaken the role of the UN agency UNRWA and effectively reshape Gaza’s internal reality via a foreign-run mechanism.
The statement stressed that any discussion over arms must remain a national matter tied to a political process that ends Israeli occupation and secures a Palestinian state.
The groups labelled the proposed international role as effectively serving the Israeli occupation if it coordinated with Israeli forces, and they called for any future force to fall under direct UN command, liaise only with official Palestinian bodies and restrict its tasks to protecting civilians, ensuring aid delivery and separating forces.
They also rejected any foreign bases, trusteeship or foreign military presence in Gaza, calling those a direct assault on Palestinian sovereignty.
The factions called for an Arab-Islamic framework for Gaza’s administration, advocating for a transitional Palestinian technocrat committee to take over from Hamas, rooted in the “free Palestinian will” and maintaining unity of land, people and institutions.
The draft resolution is tied to the second phase of President Donald Trump’s Gaza plan, which introduced the idea of an international force and outlined a pathway toward statehood.
The ceasefire went into effect on 10 October under Egyptian-Qatari-U.S.-Turkish mediation, but the planned transition into security and administrative arrangements has been delayed amid Israeli objections and continued violence in the Strip.
The U.S military said it carried out retaliatory strikes on Iran on Thursday (7 May). Meanwhile, Iran's Joint Military Command accused the U.S. of breaching the ceasefire, by striking an Iranian oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz and launching attacks on several Iranian cities.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that Iran wanted to negotiate and make a deal in comments to reporters on Wednesday (6 May). But earlier, he warned Washington would ramp up attacks if no agreement was reached.
Argentinian authorities are reconstructing the journeys of Dutch citizens who presented with symptoms of deadly hantavirus after visiting Argentina and Chile as part of a luxury cruise trip, the country's Health Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday (6 May)
The 61st Venice Biennale has opened under grey skies and political tension, with disputes over Russia and Israel, resignations on the jury, and protests marking the start of one of the art world’s most high-profile events.
Latvian authorities said two drones entered NATO member Latvia from Russian territory and crashed on Thursday morning, with officials linking them to Ukraine’s wider drone operations against targets in Russia.
Turkish drone manufacturer Baykar signed its first export agreement on Wednesday for the newly unveiled Bayraktar Kızılelma unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
Iran’s parliamentary speaker has warned that Tehran still faces the risk of military or terrorist attacks, despite reports that a peace agreement with the U.S. could be announced this week.
Ukraine’s military said it struck a Russian Karakurt-class small missile carrier in the Caspian Sea near Russia’s Dagestan region on Thursday. The extent of the damage is still being assessed, according to Kyiv.
An Israeli air strike has killed the son of Hamas’ chief negotiator in U.S.-mediated Gaza talks, as group leaders met in Cairo to shore up a fragile ceasefire with Israel.
Reports that Emmanuel Macron planned to cross from Armenia into Türkiye via their closed border - and was reportedly blocked following consultations with Azerbaijan - have sparked renewed debate on South Caucasus diplomacy.
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