EU considers training Palestinian police officers from Gaza

European Union foreign ministers will discuss next week a proposal for the bloc to take a leading role in training 3,000 Palestinian police officers for future deployment in the Gaza Strip.

The document, prepared by the EU’s diplomatic service ahead of the ministers’ meeting on 20 November, outlines possible ways to support the implementation of the 20-point Gaza plan proposed by US President Donald Trump, Caliber.Az reports via Reuters.

In October, Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas agreed on the first phase of the plan, but the prospects for implementing subsequent stages remain highly uncertain.

In the document, the European External Action Service proposes expanding two existing EU civilian missions in the region — one focused on border assistance and the other on supporting police and judicial reforms within the Palestinian Authority (PA).

The EU police support mission could “take leadership in training the Palestinian police force in Gaza by providing direct training and support to approx. 3,000 Palestinian police officers (on the PA pay-roll) from Gaza, with a view to training the full 13,000 Palestinian police force,” the document states.

The paper also proposes extending the EU’s civilian border-monitoring mission in Rafah to other crossing points.

However, it remains uncertain whether the bloc will move forward with these plans.

By Jeyhun Aghazada