NEW YORK CITY: Gaza Board of Peace Director-General Nickolay Mladenov said on Tuesday that a comprehensive plan to disarm militant groups in the enclave offers the only viable path to both Israeli security and Palestinian self-determination, warning that failure would entrench instability and humanitarian crisis.
“Only verified decommissioning combined with a new professional police force (and) a civilian administration (eliminates) that threat permanently,” Mladenov told the UN Security Council.
The former UN Middle East peace envoy was appointed in January 2026 by the US to lead the Board of Peace, a body tasked with overseeing Gaza’s reconstruction, governance and the disarmament of Hamas.
He told council members that past Israeli military operations in Gaza had failed to produce lasting security, and weapons stockpiles and militant infrastructure had repeatedly been rebuilt.
“The evidence of the last 20 years,” he said, debunks arguments that long-term Israeli military control of the enclave is necessary.
“Verified decommissioning and accountable Palestinian governance does not trade away security.”
The Board of Peace was launched in January under US President Donald Trump as an initiative to oversee a Gaza ceasefire and reconstruction effort. It stems from a November 2025 Security Council resolution and is mandated to implement a 20-point peace plan while guiding the establishment of a technocratic administration in the enclave.
Mladenov warned that despite progress under an initial ceasefire phase, conditions in Gaza remain dire, with essential services operating at a fraction of pre-war levels and the healthcare system in collapse.
More than 2 million people in the enclave continue to face severe shortages of housing, aid and basic services, he said, calling for the reopening of the Rafah crossing, and the scaling up humanitarian deliveries and temporary housing.
“All parties must fully respect the ceasefire,” Mladenov said.
“Every violation (risks) unraveling what has been painstakingly built.”
He urged Security Council members to press Hamas and other Palestinian factions to accept the disarmament framework without delay, describing it as a prerequisite for reconstruction and Israeli military withdrawal.
“If this process fails the consequences will be devastating,” he said, warning of a “divided Gaza” and the loss of any credible pathway to Palestinian statehood.
Mladenov also laid out a vision in which Gaza would be rebuilt under Palestinian governance, with functioning infrastructure and economic opportunities that would replace dependence on aid.
“The choice before the parties (is) a renewed war or a new beginning,” he said. “There is no third option.”
