Uganda Approves Potential Gaza Deployment

PHOTO CAPTION: FILE PHOTO: A general view shows the entrance to the Ugandan Parliament building in Kampala, Uganda May 2, 2023. REUTERS/Abubaker Lubowa/ File Photo

KAMPALA, Aug. 6 — Uganda’s parliament voted Thursday to approve the possible deployment of its military to the Gaza Strip as part of a multinational security force proposed under President Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan.

Before the vote, Ugandan Defence Minister Kiryowa Kiwanuka told lawmakers that Trump had contacted President Yoweri Museveni through emissaries in July to seek Uganda’s participation in the international force.

An Israeli official said last month that personnel from “friendly countries,” including Uganda, could join the force if it is deployed. Thursday’s parliamentary debate marked the first time Uganda publicly acknowledged that it might participate.

A fragile ceasefire agreement was reached in October, after which Trump outlined a Gaza peace plan calling for increased humanitarian aid, a civilian administration led by Palestinian technocrats, Hamas disarming and Israeli forces withdrawing.

The plan has stalled, and the group of technocrats known as the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza has remained outside the territory. Under the proposal, an International Stabilization Force would deploy in areas not under Israeli control, though it remains unclear when such a force might enter Gaza.

Uganda has a history of participating in international peacekeeping and enforcement missions. It currently has military contingents deployed in countries including Somalia, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“Following the invitation by His Excellency Donald Trump ... the President of the Republic of Uganda, is ready to deploy in the Gaza Strip the desired Uganda People’s Defense Forces contingent,” Kiwanuka told lawmakers.

Some lawmakers questioned what legal framework would govern the deployment. Kiwanuka said a status of forces agreement would be signed after the parliamentary vote.

Much of Gaza remains in ruins after two years of full-scale war triggered by the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

(Source: Reuters)