In the second of a two-part series, Connie Peck explains why Trump’s Board of Peace is struggling to turn its Gaza plan into reality as implementation stalls and critical institutions remain undeployed.

The Board of Peace (BoP) was established to implement Trump’s ‘Comprehensive plan to end the Gaza conflict’, a 20-point plan drawn up by Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff and subsequently negotiated with Israel and Hamas with input from a number of Arab and Muslim countries. The agreement was signed on 9 October and came into force the next day. It was endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2803 of 17 November 2025, with 13 members of the council in favour and Russia and China abstaining.

The first phase of the plan began before the BoP was formed and involved the initial withdrawal of Israeli troops to agreed-upon deployment lines (although this did not hold and almost daily ceasefire violations ensued). It also involved the return to Israel by Hamas of all living hostages, as well as the remains of those deceased. This was followed by Israel’s release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners, including remains of those deceased.

Humanitarian aid was gradually reintroduced by UN agencies and their partners, although needs continue to be extensive and restoration of basic services is far from complete. The Rafah border crossing was also reopened, although sporadically closed again.

On 15 January 2026, Trump announced the formation of his Board of Peace, whose charter (drawn up by his administration) named Trump as its chairman for life and gave him extensive unilateral powers over the board. In his usual self-congratulatory style, he wrote on Truth Social: “I can say with certainty that it is the Greatest and Most Prestigious Board ever assembled at any time, any place.”

Trump invited some 60 countries to join his BoP, including Israel, although no sub-Saharan African country was invited. Netanyahu initially refused because invitations had not been coordinated with him and he disapproved of invitations to Türkiye and Qatar. After further discussion with Trump, Israel agreed to join – along with 27 other countries. More than half of those invited, including Australia, declined, concerned that the board’s charter was an attempt to establish a ‘Trump-dominated alternative to the United Nations’ that could undermine the role of the UN and other multilateral organisations. Countries that agreed were appointed for a three-year term, with those wanting lifetime membership required to contribute $1 billion.

It was also announced that Bulgarian Nikolay Mladenov, the former UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, would become director-general of the board and high representative for Gaza. As well, US General Jasper Jeffers was appointed commander of the planned International Stabilization Force.

A nine-member executive board was formed with seven who have close ties to Trump. The eighth member, Indian-born Ajay Banga, president of the World Bank Group, is also a US citizen. Tony Blair........

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