Arab League calls for UN peacekeepers to be sent to Gaza, West Bank

The Arab League on Thursday called for the deployment of a United Nations peacekeeping force in the Gaza Strip and the Israeli-occupied West Bank until a solution between two States can be negotiated, in a press release. which also called on the UN Security Council to set a deadline for this political process.

The notion of deploying UN peacekeepers in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been mentioned occasionally by diplomats. But the Arab League statement appears to be the first time the group has formally made such a request in a written document, according to Farhan Haq, a U.N. spokesman.

It's unlikely. that UN peacekeepers would be deployed to Gaza and the West Bank in the near future, as sending UN peacekeepers to any conflict first requires authorization from the Council. UN forces, which are usually drawn from the armed forces of several countries, do not enter actual combat zones or engage in combat. Israel and Hamas should also agree to have UN peacekeepers on the ground.

“There must first be have peace to maintain,” Mr. Haq said. “We are not engaging in active combat and the parties themselves must agree to allow the presence of peacekeepers. We are not intervening as an enemy force or an occupying force. Thursday in Manama, Bahrain, a summit dominated by discussions on the war in Gaza.

In addition to calling for an immediate ceasefire and accusing Israel to hinder these efforts, the Arab League called for the "deployment of international protection and peacekeeping forces of the United Nations in the occupied Palestinian territory until the two-state solution is implemented."

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