Turkey is prepared to contribute a few thousand troops to a US-backed, Muslim-majority force in the Gaza Strip, according to Turkish officials familiar with the matter, despite Israeli opposition to such a move.
The US broadly supports Turkey joining the International Stabilization Force pushed by President Donald Trump, following Ankara’s mediation of a Gaza ceasefire last month along with Egypt and Qatar, said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters. The deployment would include combat and engineering units, and Turkey wants Washington to limit Israel’s use of military force once the troops go into the enclave.
It’s unclear how Turkey would be able to join the ISF — seen as crucial to Trump’s plan to ensure the truce turns into a proper peace — without Israel’s approval. Turkey’s government believes that Israel may eventually back down if the US puts pressure on them — though, so far, there’s been no sign of the Israeli government doing that.
Tensions between the two countries have surged since Hamas’s attack on Israel in 2023 and the subsequent war in Gaza. The Jewish state has accused Ankara of supporting the Palestinian militant group, while Turkey has been outraged by the killing of tens of thousands of civilians in Gaza.
“Turkey, led by Erdogan, led a hostile approach against Israel,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said last month, referring to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “So it is not reasonable for us to let their armed forces enter the Gaza Strip, we will not agree to that and we said it to our American friends.”
Turkey has expressed interest in contributing to the force, along with many other nations, according to a senior US administration official. The official didn’t say whether or not the US supported the effort.
The force, which could include countries such as Indonesia, Pakistan, and Azerbaijan, is expected to help keep order while the Israeli military withdraws from the Gaza Strip and as an interim government is subsequently established, the Turkish officials said.
Before committing the troops, Turkey and other countries are keen to see Washington rein in continued Israeli military attacks in Gaza and clarify the mandate of the force, the officials said. Israel has killed 300 Palestinians since the ceasefire started on Oct. 10, according to Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by the US and many other countries. Israel says it’s been reacting to attacks — some of them deadly — on its troops.
With assistance from Dan Williams and Mario Parker.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
