Uganda’s parliament on Thursday approved the deployment of troops to Gaza as part of a proposed international peacekeeping force aimed at securing the territory following the Israel-Hamas war.
The motion, tabled by Defence Minister Kiryowa Kiwanuka, marks Uganda’s first public commitment to join the proposed International Stabilization Force (ISF) for Gaza. Morocco has also pledged troops for the mission.
Kiwanuka told lawmakers Uganda had the military experience required for the operation, citing the country’s longstanding participation in peacekeeping missions, including deployments in Somalia.
The force was proposed in February by U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace and is expected to be led by American Major General Jasper Jeffers. Jeffers said in May that the planned 20,000-member force would help ensure “future prosperity and enduring peace” in Gaza.
Some opposition lawmakers questioned Uganda’s decision to participate, raising concerns about the mission’s objectives and financing.
“We also need to know the funding of this force. Who is going to fund our stay in Gaza?” lawmaker Enos Asiimwe said during the parliamentary debate.
Parliament did not disclose when Ugandan troops would deploy or how many personnel would be contributed.
The approval follows Trump’s announcement last week of an agreement under which Hamas would disarm and Israel would withdraw its forces from Gaza. Under the deal, the International Stabilization Force would deploy after the phased withdrawal of Israeli troops.
The broader ceasefire agreement, reached last year, requires Israel to halt military operations while Hamas and allied militant groups cease armed activity and begin a process of decommissioning weapons.
Israel has said it has “serious security concerns” about the agreement and has shared those concerns with the United States.
According to figures cited in the agreement, Israeli military operations have killed about 1,250 people since the ceasefire was reached in October, which ended two years of large-scale fighting between Israel and Hamas.
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