Hamas Entrenching with no International Stabilization Force in Gaza
Murad Makhmudov, Michiyo Tanabe, and Kanako Mita
Modern Tokyo Times
Despite international praise for a proposed U.S.-backed stabilization force in Gaza, Hamas is entrenching its position on the ground. The force—still in the planning stages—may eventually operate under a United Nations framework with support from key European powers. However, the volatile conditions and the sobering precedent of international failures in places like Haiti cast serious doubt on the feasibility of disarming Hamas and other Islamist groups. Grand declarations have so far been met with sluggish action, making meaningful progress elusive.
Unlike a full-scale UN peacekeeping mission, the U.S. envisions a more limited, coalition-based force, loosely inspired by past interventions such as in Haiti. Its core mandate would be to enforce a ceasefire and lay the foundation for fragile stability in Gaza. Still, the mission faces steep challenges—and its success is anything but guaranteed.
Egypt is emerging as the most likely candidate to lead this effort—a pragmatic choice from Israel’s standpoint. With recent experience battling Islamist insurgencies in the Sinai, Egypt’s military is viewed as both capable and politically palatable. In contrast, Turkey—under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan—remains a divisive option, due to its regional ambitions and sharp anti-Israel rhetoric.
Each passing day underscores Hamas’s determination to consolidate power through violence. Disturbing videos have surfaced showing Hamas executing fellow Palestinians in cold blood across Gaza City and beyond—targeting those perceived as threats to its authority. In the absence of effective governance, Hamas is exploiting the power vacuum to reassert control through fear and intimidation.
This harsh reality signals a dire challenge ahead for any international stabilization force. By the time such a mission is deployed, it may find itself confronting an entrenched regime of coercion and brutality—making its task not just difficult, but increasingly perilous.
Lee Jay Walker (Modern Tokyo Times analyst) says, “Still, the lineup of potential contributors raises difficult questions. According to The Guardian, Egypt, Turkey, Indonesia, and Azerbaijan are being considered as key troop providers. Yet the irony is glaring: Indonesia continues a brutal campaign against indigenous Christian Papuans in West Papua; Turkey maintains an illegal occupation in northern Cyprus; and Azerbaijan has just expelled the last Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh in a de facto ethnic cleansing.”
The BBC reports, “How does a group that has governed the Gaza Strip for almost 20 years, ruling two million Palestinians with an iron rod and fighting Israel in repeated wars, suddenly lay down its arms and relinquish control?”
The BBC continues, “Judging by a steady stream of gruesome images emerging from Gaza since the ceasefire came into effect on 10 October, Hamas seems intent on reasserting its authority.”
It appears likely that Israel will continue targeting Hamas operatives, much as it routinely strikes Hezbollah figures in Lebanon despite existing agreements. This pattern suggests that even with a stabilization force in place, Israeli military actions will persist—raising serious concerns among contributing nations. As a result, countries involved in the deployment may grow increasingly uneasy, fearing entanglement in a volatile and unpredictable theater of operations.
If Hamas refuses to relinquish its grip on power and instead entrenches itself further in the political and security vacuum, it raises a pressing question: will any regional actors be willing to confront Hamas directly as part of efforts to disarm militant groups and enforce demilitarization?
Despite public commitments to stabilization and reconstruction, few nations appear eager to engage in the kind of sustained, high-risk operations that disarmament would require. Without a credible and coordinated effort to challenge Hamas’s military dominance, any broader peace or reconstruction plan risks being undermined from the outset.
Absent a firm and coordinated effort by the international community to confront Hamas directly on the ground in Gaza, another round of escalation between Hamas and Israel appears inevitable.
Without real consequences or containment, Hamas will likely regroup, rearm, and provoke further conflict—dragging the region back into cycles of violence. Stabilization in Gaza will remain a distant goal unless global actors move beyond rhetoric and demonstrate real resolve.
Modern Tokyo News is part of the Modern Tokyo Times group
http://moderntokyotimes.com Modern Tokyo Times – International News and Japan News
http://sawakoart.com – Sawako Utsumi’s website and Modern Tokyo Times artist
https://moderntokyonews.com Modern Tokyo News – Tokyo News and International News
PLEASE JOIN ON TWITTER
https://twitter.com/MTT_News Modern Tokyo Times
PLEASE JOIN ON FACEBOOK