Trump administration plans 5,000-person military base in Gaza

The Trump administration is planning to build a 5,000-person military base in Gaza as part of a proposed multinational stabilisation force, according to contracting records reviewed by the Guardian.

The documents outline a sprawling facility covering more than 350 acres in southern Gaza, intended to serve as the operating headquarters of a future International Stabilization Force (ISF). The ISF would function under the newly created Board of Peace, an organisation approved by the UN Security Council to oversee governance and security arrangements in the territory. The Board is chaired by US President Donald Trump and led in part by his son-in-law Jared Kushner.

According to the plans, the base would be constructed in phases, eventually spanning 1,400 metres by 1,100 metres. The compound would be encircled with barbed wire and include 26 trailer-mounted armored watchtowers, a small arms range, bunkers, and a warehouse for military equipment. The site, described as an arid stretch of flatland in southern Gaza, has reportedly been visited by a small group of international construction firms experienced in operating in conflict zones.

Indonesia has reportedly offered to contribute up to 8,000 troops to the force. Its president was among four Southeast Asian leaders scheduled to attend an inaugural Board of Peace meeting in Washington on February 19.

The UN Security Council authorised the Board to establish a temporary ISF tasked with securing Gaza’s borders, maintaining internal peace, protecting civilians, and training and supporting “vetted Palestinian police forces”. However, key details remain unclear, including the force’s rules of engagement in the event of renewed fighting involving Israel or Hamas, and its role in disarming Hamas — a stated Israeli condition for reconstruction efforts.

Contractors cited by the Guardian described funding and oversight arrangements as opaque, with some discussions reportedly conducted via the encrypted messaging app Signal rather than official government channels.

The base construction document, issued by the Board of Peace and prepared with assistance from US contracting officials, calls for a network of reinforced bunkers measuring 6 metres by 4 metres and 2.5 metres high, equipped with ventilation systems. It also requires contractors to conduct geophysical surveys to identify “any subterranean voids, tunnels, or large cavities,” likely a reference to Hamas’s extensive tunnel network.

A section of the contract outlines a “Human Remains Protocol”.

“If suspected human remains or cultural artifacts are discovered, all work in the immediate area must cease immediately, the area must be secured, and the Contracting Officer must be notified immediately for direction,” it states.

Gaza’s civil defence agency estimates that about 10,000 bodies remain buried under rubble following months of conflict.

Ownership of the land designated for the base remains unclear. Much of southern Gaza is currently under Israeli control, and the UN estimates that at least 1.9 million Palestinians have been displaced during the war.

Diana Buttu, a Palestinian-Canadian lawyer and former peace negotiator, questioned the legality of the project.

“Whose permission did they get to build that military base?”

US Central Command referred inquiries to the Board of Peace. A Trump administration official declined to comment on the reported contract details, saying: “As the President has said, no US boots will be on the ground. We’re not going to discuss leaked documents.”

By Sabina Mammadli