The day after the war in Gaza poses a major dilemma for regional and international actors, who are working to shape a plan for deploying an Arab–international force in the Strip in a bid to end the war, which is nearing its second anniversary on 7 October.

The proposed plan is not new; it has been put forward repeatedly in the past and was met with strong rejection from Arab capitals, as well as a pledge from the Palestinian resistance to confront it. What is new this time, however, is Egypt’s announcement of its acceptance of deploying international forces in the Gaza Strip.

Egypt’s acceptance brings with it a mix of concerns and the need for assurances, while also raising questions over the mandate of the new force, the potential for confrontation with resistance factions, and Israel’s underlying motives.

Egyptian acceptance

A few days ago, Cairo showed a notable openness to the idea of deploying international forces in the Strip, through its Foreign Minister, Badr Abdelatty, who stated that “there is no objection to deploying international forces in the Gaza Strip.” This was the same proposal put forward by the Israeli side more than a year ago, which Egypt had previously rejected.

This new development marks a shift in Cairo’s position, as it faces US pressure to accept a plan for the displacement of Gaza’s residents into its territory. At the same time, Egypt seeks to bring an end to the war, which has created major tensions along its northern border with the Strip and disrupted international shipping in the Red Sea and the Suez Canal due to attacks by Yemen’s Houthi movement on vessels bound for Israeli ports.

Observers believe that Egypt’s sudden shift aims to block the Israeli government’s plans to reoccupy the Strip, while at the same time preventing Hamas from returning to power there, paving the way for the Palestinian Authority to resume governance in Gaza, and opening the door to reconstruction and the two-state solution.

It remains unclear for now the extent of Egypt’s participation in the proposed force, which countries will be involved, how many troops are to be deployed on the ground, the nature of their armament, whether European states will take part or if participation will be limited to Arab and Islamic countries, and under........

© Middle East Monitor