As Hamas intensified its crackdown on the Gazan population, Russia rejected a US proposal for an international force in the enclave to implement Washington’s peace plan, deepening uncertainty for the region’s future.

On Thursday, Russia rejected a draft resolution sent by the United States last week to the United Nations Security Council which calls for the establishment of an International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza to remain for at least two years.

Washington publicly called on members of the UN Security Council to back its resolution to create an international peacekeeping force aimed at stabilizing post-war Gaza, which has been devastated by two years of fighting between Hamas and Israel.

“We urge the Security Council to seize this historic moment to pave a path towards enduring peace in the Middle East by supporting this resolution,” US officials said in a statement.

Under US President Donald Trump’s peace plan, the ISF will oversee the Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and train local security forces.

However, the US proposal is facing opposition from Russia and China — both veto-wielding members of the UN Security Council — who have rejected the resolution, citing concerns over the proposed board to temporarily govern the war-torn enclave and the absence of any transitional role for the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Based on the proposed draft resolution, participating countries in the international force would be granted a broad mandate to maintain security and administer Gaza through the end of 2027, with the possibility of extending the mission.

In recent weeks, Washington has been working closely with regional powers to determine the composition of the peacekeeping force.

According to the draft resolution, the ISF would include troops from multiple participating countries and would be responsible for securing Gaza’s borders with Israel and Egypt, while also protecting civilians and maintaining humanitarian corridors.

In addition, the ISF would seemingly be expected to take on the responsibility of disarming Hamas — a key component of Trump’s peace plan to end the war in Gaza, which the Palestinian terror group has repeatedly rejected.

As negotiations over the draft continue, Russia and China are pushing for the full removal of the proposed “Board of Peace,” a body chaired by Trump and charged with overseeing Gaza’s redevelopment, and stronger guarantees for the future establishment of a Palestinian state.

Russia has put forward its own draft UN resolution, directly challenging the US initiative, according to Reuters.

“The objective of our draft is to enable the Security Council to develop a balanced, acceptable, and unified approach toward achieving a sustainable cessation of hostilities,” Russia’s UN mission said in a statement. 

According to media reports, the main points of dispute involved the roadmap to an independent Palestinian state and the timeline for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip.

After incorporating some proposed changes, the revised US draft includes provisions stating that once the PA’s internal reforms are “faithfully carried out and Gaza redevelopment has advanced, the conditions may be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood.”

“The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous coexistence,” the resolution also adds.

As the US sought support for its resolution, Washington warned that any “attempts to sow discord” would have “grave, tangible, and entirely avoidable consequences for Palestinians in Gaza.”

Countries have not yet publicly committed troops to the ISF, with most waiting for clarity on the expectations and responsibilities associated with such involvement.

On Friday, Indonesia confirmed it has trained up to 20,000 troops to carry out health and construction-related tasks during post-war efforts in Gaza.

“We’ve prepared a maximum of 20,000 troops, but the specifications will revolve around health and construction,” Indonesian Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said during a press conference. “We are waiting for further decisions on Gaza peace action.”

Meanwhile, the European Union is reportedly considering a plan to train a 3,000-member Palestinian police force to help maintain security in the war-torn enclave, with discussions scheduled for next week at the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels.

If approved, the EU would take the lead in training and supporting a local Palestinian security force, with financial backing from the PA.

Last week, the United Arab Emirates said it will not take part in the proposed international stability force in Gaza, explaining that it does not yet see a clear framework. Officials noted Abu Dhabi would continue to support political efforts toward peace and remain a provider of humanitarian aid.

One major point of contention has been the role of Turkey, a key longtime backer of Hamas. While Turkey has made preparations to deploy a peacekeeping force to Gaza, Israel has adamantly opposed the idea, viewing the presence of Turkish troops near its border as a security threat,

As the international community works to determine the next steps for the ceasefire and Gaza’s post-war future, Hamas is seeking to expand its control and influence across the enclave.

Since the ceasefire went into effect, Hamas terrorists have brutally cracked down on all rivals and dissenters, with videos emerging of rampant torture and public executions in the streets.

Now, the Palestinian terrorist group is tightening its control in Gaza by monitoring all goods entering Hamas-held areas and imposing fees on certain privately imported items, according to Reuters.

Hamas violently seized total control of Gaza in 2007 after being elected to power in parliamentary elections the prior year. Under the current ceasefire, the terrorist group controls 47 percent of Gaza’s territory, compared to 53 percent controlled by the Israeli military. However, the vast majority of the population is located in the half suffering under Hamas’s crackdown.

Members of the UN Human Rights Council on Friday adopted a resolution for an independent fact–finding mission to investigate reported mass killings in al-Fashir, Sudan.

At a special session of the Council in Geneva on the situation in the city in Darfur which fell to paramilitary forces in October, the text passed without a vote – a strong sign of international support.

The fact–finding mission will also seek to identify the perpetrators of violations allegedly committed by the Rapid Support Forces and their allies in al-Fashir.

The ambassador of the permanent mission of the United Kingdom in Geneva said the fact–finding mission would document and preserve evidence of violations, which would lay the ground for future justice and accountability.

In an opening address to delegates, the UN human rights chief urged the international community to act.

“There has been too much pretense and performance, and too little action. It must stand up against these atrocities – a display of naked cruelty used to subjugate and control an entire population,” UN High Commissioner for human rights Volker Turk said.

The RSF has denied targeting civilians or blocking aid, saying such activities are due to rogue actors.

UN RIGHTS CHIEF WARNS OF SURGING VIOLENCE IN KORDOFAN

Turk also called for action against individuals and companies “fueling and profiting” from the war in Sudan, and gave a stark warning about surging violence in the central Sudanese region of Kordofan, with bombardments, blockades, and people forced from their homes.

Kordofan is a region comprised of three states that serves as a buffer between the RSF’s western Darfur strongholds and the army-held states in the east.

The fall of al-Fashir to the RSF on Oct. 26 cemented its control of the Darfur region in the more than 2-1/2-year civil war with the Sudanese army.

The UN refugee agency said on Friday that tens of thousands of people who have fled al-Fashir are unaccounted for, raising concerns for their safety after reports of rape, killings, and other abuses from escapees.

While the UN agency has recorded that nearly 100,000 people fled the city since the takeover, only around 10,000 have been counted at arrival hubs like Tawila, said Jacqueline Wilma Parlevliet, UNHCR’s Head of Sub Office from Port Sudan.

“A significant number of people on the move [are] stranded somewhere, not able to move further, because of the danger, or because they risk being sent back into al-Fashir, or because there are very vulnerable people amongst the group,” she told a Geneva press briefing.

Their journeys are becoming longer and more perilous as people increasingly shun well-trodden routes to avoid armed checkpoints, she said.

Some have traveled as far as 1,000 kilometers (660 miles) to Ad Dabba in Northern State.

It is unclear how many people remain in al-Fashir, with local sources telling UNHCR that thousands are either prevented from leaving or lacking the means or strength to flee, according to the UNHCR.

The draft text up for consideration by the UN Human Rights Council, seen by Reuters, strongly condemns the reported ethnically motivated killing and use of rape as a weapon of war by the RSF and allied forces in al-Fashir.

Mona Rishmawi, a member of the UN’s Independent International Fact–Finding Mission for Sudan described examples of rape, killing, and torture and said a comprehensive investigation is required to establish the full picture.

She said RSF forces had “turned Al Fasher University into a killing ground” where thousands of civilians had been sheltering. Witnesses also recounted seeing bodies piling in the streets and trenches dug in and around the city, Rishmawi said.

The proposed resolution stops short of mandating an investigation into the role of external actors who may be supporting the RSF, which the ambassador to the permanent mission of Sudan in Geneva criticized, saying that his country faced an “existential war” following the international community’s failure to act.

“We were warning all over the UN … calling for pressure on the rebel militia and the country that is sponsoring it with military equipment – I mean the UAE,” Hassan Hamid Hassan said.

UAE VIGOROUSLY DENIES SUPPORT FOR RSF

Sudan‘s army has accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying the RSF with weapons, a claim which UN experts and US lawmakers have found credible. The UAE ambassador to the UN in Geneva Jamal Al Musharakh on Thursday categorically rejected claims that it provides support in any form to either of the warring parties.

The United Kingdom, the European Union, Norway, and Ghana expressed support for the resolution, strongly condemning the violence in Sudan, which they warned could threaten regional stability.

The resolution also calls for the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces to allow life-saving aid to reach the many people who may still be trapped inside the famine-struck city.

Women fleeing the city have reported killings and systematic rape while others have described civilians being shot in the streets and attacked in drone strikes.

Canada‘s domestic spy agency this year foiled potentially lethal threats by Iran directed against people whom Tehran sees as enemies, the agency‘s head said in a rare speech on Thursday.

Dan Rogers, director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, also said his agents had blocked attempts by Russia to illegally acquire Canadian goods and technologies.

Rogers, appointed in February, spoke as he presented an annual update on security challenges facing Canada. CSIS directors seldom appear in public.

His comments were the first confirmation that the agency has intervened to protect Canada-based critics of Iran. In August, CSIS had merely said it was probing Iranian threats.

“In particularly alarming cases over the last year, we’ve had to reprioritize our operations to counter the actions of Iranian intelligence services and their proxies who have targeted individuals they perceive as threats to their regime,” Rogers said.

“In more than one case, this involved detecting, investigating, and disrupting potentially lethal threats against individuals in Canada,” he continued, without giving details.

Canada has particularly poor relations with Iran and cut off diplomatic ties in 2012. Last year Canada listed Iran‘s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization, prompting condemnation from Tehran.

Canada is also a critic of Russia and its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Rogers said illicit Russian procurement networks were trying to illegally acquire Canadian goods and technologies.

“This year, CSIS took action to prevent this by informing several Canadian companies that Europe-based front companies seeking to acquire their goods were in fact connected to Russian agents,” he said, adding that the companies took immediate measures to deny the Russians.