Bangladesh offers troops for Gaza stabilization force as US courts Muslim-majority allies

The Bangladeshi government has announced that it wants to join the American-led international stabilization force in the Gaza Strip. The decision comes after their national security adviser, Khalilur Rahman, recently traveled to Washington, D.C., where he met with U.S. diplomats Allison Hooker and Paul Kapur.

Rahman “expressed Bangladesh’s interest in principle to be part of the international stabilization force that would be deployed in Gaza,” the government said in an official statement. 

Bangladesh currently does not have any official diplomatic relations with Israel, and has officially stated that it will not recognize the Jewish state until a Palestinian state is established.

However, as a Muslim-majority country, Bangladesh fits the Trump administration’s vision of letting a coalition of primarily Muslim countries contribute troops to the Gaza Strip.

American and European diplomats have reportedly assessed that Gaza residents would likely be more inclined to accept Muslim and Arab troops, who would be seen as less associated with the occupation than soldiers from Western nations. Muslim-majority countries like Pakistan, Indonesia and Azerbaijan have also signaled interest in potentially dispatching forces to Gaza. 

Last September, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto told the United Nations General Assembly that the country was prepared to dispatch 20,000 troops to stabilize the Gaza Strip. 

"If and when the UN, the Security Council, and this General Assembly decide, Indonesia is ready to deploy 20,000 or even more of our sons and daughters to establish peace in Gaza or elsewhere. In Ukraine, Sudan, Libya – wherever peace needs to be established, wherever peace needs to be defended," Subianto stated.

Indonesia, like Bangladesh, does not have diplomatic relations with Israel and has linked the recognition of the Jewish state to the implementation of the internationally favored two-state solution. 

"Indonesia once again reiterates its commitment to the two-state solution of the Palestine problem. Only this will lead to peace. We must guarantee statehood for Palestine," the Indonesian president said during his UN address. 

It was reported last month that the Trump administration had asked 70 countries worldwide to contribute to the international efforts to stabilize the situation in Gaza. France, Italy, El Salvador and Malta were among the non-Muslim nations that were approached by Washington. Italy has signaled that it could potentially contribute troops to Gaza. 

However, most countries have reportedly been hesitant to commit troops to Gaza. Speaking on condition of anonymity, a U.S. official told The Wall Street Journal in December that only 19 of 70 countries had indicated a willingness to potentially contribute soldiers to an international stabilization force in Gaza. Those countries have also stressed that their troops would not confront the terrorist organization Hamas, which has so far refused to disarm.

They have further emphasized that their soldiers would only be deployed on the Israeli-controlled side of the Yellow Line, which currently divides Gaza into roughly two equal halves. It is, therefore, unclear how a potential international force could stabilize Gaza if it is not prepared to confront Hamas.

Israel has signaled that it welcomes international efforts to disarm Hamas and stabilize Gaza. However, Jerusalem has at the same time stressed that it will ultimately use more force to disarm Hamas as a military threat, if the international community fails to fulfill this task.