Jordan’s king warns countries will reject ‘peace enforcement’ role in Gaza under Trump plan

Israel killed nearly 69,000 Palestinians in its two-year genocide in Gaza, mostly women and children, and wounded over 170,300 others. (Photo/AP)

Jordan's King Abdullah II has warned that countries would reject being asked to "enforce" peace in besieged Gaza if deployed under US President Donald Trump's ceasefire plan.

"What is the mandate of security forces inside of Gaza? And we hope that it is peacekeeping, because if it's peace enforcing, nobody will want to touch that," the monarch told BBC Panorama on Monday in an exclusive interview.

"Peacekeeping is that you're sitting there supporting the local police force, the Palestinians, which Jordan and Egypt are willing to train in large numbers, but that takes time. If we're running around Gaza on patrol with weapons, that's not a situation that any country would like to get involved in," he said.

The king's comments highlight concerns among the US and other nations about being drawn into continuing Israeli genocide.

According to the UN, peace enforcement involves coercive measures, including military force, while peacekeeping operates with the consent of the parties to a conflict and troops only use force in self-defence and in defence of their mandate.

Under Trump's 20-point peace plan, Arab states and international partners are expected to commit stabilisation forces to "train and provide support to vetted Palestinian police forces in Gaza and will consult with Jordan and Egypt, who have extensive experience in this field."

Hamas is required to disarm and relinquish political control of the territory.

'Too close politically'

King Abdullah said Jordan would not send forces into Gaza because his country was "too close politically" to the situation.

More than half of Jordan's population is of Palestinian descent, and over the decades, the country has taken in 2.3 million Palestinian refugees fleeing earlier policies and attacks from Israel, the largest number in the region.

Asked if he trusted Hamas to give up any political role in Gaza, he said: "I don't know them, but those that are working extremely close to them — Qatar and Egypt — feel very, very optimistic that they will abide by that."

"Looking over the back ramp was just shocking," he said. "The devastation of that part of Gaza was just a shock to me.

"I've seen it myself, and how we, as the international community, are allowing this to happen is mind-boggling."

Two years of nightmare

In the same Panorama programme, Queen Rania of Jordan – who is of Palestinian descent – criticised the international community for failing to stop the carnage sooner.

"You know what it's like to be a parent over the last two years? To watch your children suffering, starving, shaking in terror, and to be powerless to do anything about it, and to know that the whole world is watching and not to do anything about it," she said. "That nightmare, it's the nightmare of any parent, but that nightmare has been the daily reality for Palestinians for the last two years."

When asked if she believed lasting peace was possible, she said hope was not naive but "a form of defiance."

"I truly believe that Palestinians and Israelis can exist side by side," she said. "In the current atmosphere, there's too much animosity, too much anger and grief and hatred and cynicism between the two peoples to actually forge a peace on their own. I'm not being naive here. But I think with the push of the international community, that is the only way."

Israel killed nearly 69,000 Palestinians in its two-year genocide in Gaza, mostly women and children, and wounded over 170,300 others.

It has reduced most of the enclave to ruins and practically displaced the entire population.

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Source: TRT