Israel is obstructing a key project under the programme of the Board of Peace, established by US President Donald Trump to oversee the next phase of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, by refusing to allow the construction of a military base intended to host international forces, according to a report by the British newspaper The Guardian.
A base to host 150 international soldiers
Two months after the project contract was awarded last August, Israel has still not allowed construction to begin on the military site, which is intended to host 150 international soldiers forming the vanguard of the international stabilisation force planned for deployment in the Strip. An exclusive report by journalist Aram Roston in Washington said the Board of Peace had awarded Arkle International, a US company based in Louisiana, its first construction contract in Gaza.
The site was intended to become the international force’s launch point. A person with direct knowledge of the project said Israel was preventing contractors and lorries from entering the Strip, adding that Israel “will not open the border”. The source said the temporary base would cover about 10,000 square metres, at a site previously used by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation project before it was halted in October 2025.
Base delay threatens start of reconstruction
The base is planned to host rotating armed units as part of a broader force of 500 soldiers who have already arrived from Morocco and Kosovo. However, the delay in building the site threatens the rest of the Board of Peace’s programme, according to the source, because the start of reconstruction is linked to deploying the international force and securing the entry of essential equipment and materials.
The source said the absence of a security force was preventing construction equipment from entering and the building of vital facilities and basic service networks, stressing that reconstruction work could not begin in the absence of security.
The Board of Peace administration believes the Israeli government may allow the project to proceed after the Israeli elections scheduled for 27 October this year, according to the source, tying the plan’s future to political calculations inside Israel. The Board of Peace was established after the ceasefire agreement in October 2025 and is central to Trump’s efforts to demonstrate that he ended the war.
Trump holds the council’s chairmanship for life. Its executive board also includes his son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff, while many Western countries have distanced themselves from it. On 23 September last year, the council announced a plan worth 2.45 billion dollars to be implemented over six months, as part of a vision for rebuilding the Gaza Strip that could cost 71 billion dollars over ten years.
The plans face the continuation of Israeli military operations. Gaza health authorities reported that about 1,400 Palestinians had been killed since the ceasefire, amid questions over the prospects of consolidating the truce and beginning reconstruction.
