Trump invites more global leaders to join Gaza 'Board of Peace'
A collage of Argentinian President Javier Milei, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi. — World Economic Forum/Reuters/BBC/Saudi Press Agency
United States President Donald Trump's so-called "Board of Peace" for postconflict Gaza began to take shape on Saturday, with the leaders of Egypt, Turkiye, Argentina and Canada asked to join.
The board is set to supervise the temporary governance of Gaza, which has been under a fragile ceasefire since October and lies in rubble after two-plus years of relentless Israeli bombardment.
Trump had named members of the board a day ago. The step came after a Palestinian committee of technocrats meant to govern Gaza held its first meeting in Cairo, which was attended by Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, who plays a key role in the Middle East.
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He has already declared himself the chair of a "Board of Peace" and announced its full membership that will include former British prime minister Tony Blair, as well as senior Americans, Kushner, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Steve Witkoff, Trump's business partner turned globe-trotting negotiator.
Turkish presidential communications director Burhanettin Duran posted on social media that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received the proposal in a letter sent a day ago by Trump, inviting him to "become a founding member" of the board.
Birleşmiş Milletler Güvenlik Konseyi 2803 sayılı kararıyla, ABD Başkanı Donald Trump tarafından açıklanan Gazze İhtilafını Sona Erdirmek için Kapsamlı Planı (Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict) desteklemeyi kararlaştırmıştır.
Bu çerçevede, Gazze'de güvenliğin…Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said Cairo was "studying" a request for President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to join.
Meanwhile, a senior aide told AFP today that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has also been invited by Trump to join the board, an offer he intends to accept. The senior Canadian government official did not provide further details.
Sharing an image of the invitation letter, Argentine President Javier Milei wrote on X that it would be "an honour" to participate in the initiative.
GRACIAS PRESIDENTE TRUMP @realDonaldTrump@POTUS
Es un honor para mí haber recibido esta noche la invitación para que la Argentina integre, como Miembro Fundador, el Board of Peace, una organización creada por el Presidente Trump para promover una paz duradera en regiones… pic.twitter.com/ORalzkzhlvSeparately, Blair said he was "honoured" to be tapped by Trump to the fledgling board.
"I thank President Trump for his leadership in establishing the Board of Peace and am honoured to be appointed to its Executive Board," the veteran politician said in a statement sent to AFP.
Blair is a controversial figure in the Middle East because of his role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Trump himself said last year that he wanted to make sure Blair was an "acceptable choice to everybody".
Blair spent years focused on the Israeli-Palestinian issue as representative of the "Middle East Quartet" — the United Nations, European Union, US and Russia — after leaving Downing Street in 2007.
The White House said the Board of Peace will take on issues such as "governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding and capital mobilisation".
Trump, a real-estate developer, has previously mused about turning devastated Gaza into a Riviera-style area of resorts, although he has backed away from calls to forcibly displace the population.
The other members of the board are World Bank President Ajay Banga, an Indian-born American businessman; billionaire US financier Marc Rowan; and Robert Gabriel, a loyal Trump aide who serves on the National Security Council.
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Israel's military said on Friday it had again hit the Gaza Strip in response to a "blatant violation" of the ceasefire declared in October.
The strikes come despite Washington announcing that the Gaza plan had gone on to a second phase — from implementing the ceasefire to disarming Hamas, whose October 2023 attack on Israel prompted the massive Israeli offensive.
Trump also named US Major General Jasper Jeffers a day ago to head the International Stabilisation Force, which will be tasked with providing security in Gaza and training a new police force to succeed Hamas.
Jeffers, from special operations in US Central Command, in late 2024 was put in charge of monitoring a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, which has continued periodic strikes aimed at Hezbollah militants.
The US has been searching the world for countries to contribute to the force, with Indonesia an early volunteer.
But diplomats expect challenges in seeing countries send troops so long as Hamas does not agree to disarm fully.
Gaza native and former Palestinian Authority deputy minister Ali Shaath was earlier tapped to head the governing committee.
The committee's meeting in Cairo also included Bulgarian diplomat Nickolay Mladenov, who was given the role of high representative liaising between the new governing body and Trump's Board of Peace.
Committee members are scheduled to meet again today, one of them told AFP on condition of anonymity.
"We hope to go to Gaza next week or the week after; our work is there, and we need to be there," he said.
Trump also named a second "executive board" that appears designed to have a more advisory role.
Blair, Witkoff and Mladenov will serve on it, as well as Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
Israel has refused a Turkish role in the security force, owing to President Erdogan's fiery denunciations of Israel's actions in Gaza.
The board will also include senior figures from mediators Egypt and Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, which normalised ties with Israel in 2020.
Trump also named to the board Sigrid Kaag, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Gaza, despite his administration's efforts to sideline the world body.