UN Security Council holds high-level meeting on Gaza before Trump’s Board of Peace convenes

Asked what he hopes to see from the back-to-back meetings this week, Palestinian UN Ambassador Riyad Mansour told reporters Tuesday, “We expect from the international community to stop Israel and end their illegal effort against annexation, whether in Washington or in New York.”

The foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia, among others, are in attendance at the monthly Mideast meeting of the 15-member council after many Arab and Islamic countries requested last week that it discuss Gaza and Israel’s contentious West Bank settlement project before some of them head to Washington.

The board to be chaired by Trump was originally envisioned as a small group of world leaders overseeing his 20-point plan for Gaza’s future. But the Republican president’s ambitious new vision for the board to be a mediator of worldwide conflicts has led to skepticism from major allies.

While more than 20 countries have so far accepted an invitation to join the board, close US partners, including France, Germany and others, have opted not to join yet and renewed support for the UN, which also is in the throes of major reforms and funding cuts.

Mike Waltz, the US ambassador to the UN, dismissed concerns about the composition of the Board of Peace, telling conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt in an interview Monday that the most relevant countries, including Qatar and Egypt, which are in touch with Hamas’ leadership, have accepted the invitation.

“All of those countries are on the Board of Peace, singing the same tune as the United States,” he said.

The Security Council is be meeting a day after nearly all of its 15 members — minus the United States — and dozens of other diplomats joined Palestinian ambassador Mansour as he read a statement on behalf of 80 countries and several organizations condemning Israel’s latest actions in the West Bank, demanding an immediate reversal and underlining “strong opposition to any form of annexation.”

Israel, whose UN mission did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday’s meeting, is launching a contentious land regulation process that will deepen its control in the occupied West Bank. Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said it amounts to “de facto sovereignty” that will block the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Outraged Palestinians, Arab countries and human rights groups have called the moves an illegal annexation of the territory, home to roughly 3.4 million Palestinians who seek it for a future state.

The UN meeting also is expected to delve into the US-brokered ceasefire deal that took effect Oct. 10 after more than two years of war between Israel and Hamas. The UK, which currently holds the presidency of the council, said the meeting will include briefings by UN political chief Rosemary DiCarlo and by Israeli and Palestinian civil society representatives for the first time since the Oct. 7 attacks.

Aspects of the ceasefire deal have moved forward, including Hamas releasing all the hostages it was holding and increased amounts of humanitarian aid getting into Gaza, though the UN says the level is insufficient. A new technocratic committee has been appointed to administer Gaza’s daily affairs.

But the most challenging steps lie ahead, including the deployment of an international security force, disarming Hamas and rebuilding Gaza.

Trump said this week that the Board of Peace members have pledged $5 billion toward Gaza reconstruction and will commit thousands of personnel to international stabilization and police forces for the territory. He didn’t provide details. Indonesia’s military says up to 8,000 of its troops are expected to be ready by the end of June for a potential deployment to Gaza as part of a humanitarian and peace mission.