The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has notified Congress that it plans to provide more than $206 million to support a proposed international peacekeeping force in Gaza, marking the first major U.S. financial commitment to the plan for stabilizing and rebuilding the war-ravaged enclave.
According to documents obtained by Reuters, the State Department informed Congress in notices dated July 30 that $200 million would be allocated for equipment, infrastructure, vehicles and operating costs for the proposed International Stabilization Force (ISF). An additional $6.3 million would be used to modify U.S. armored personnel carriers for the force.
The notices, sent to key congressional committees overseeing appropriations and foreign affairs, had not previously been reported.
The funding represents the first concrete U.S. expenditure for the proposed force and signals the Trump administration’s intention to advance its Gaza plan despite continued disagreements between Israel and Hamas over the conditions required for implementation.
“The ISF will lead security operations, support comprehensive demilitarization and enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid and reconstruction materials in Gaza,” one of the notices said, while noting that negotiations over the force’s final composition are still underway.
The administration has not disclosed how much the force will ultimately cost.
Trump established the Board of Peace to oversee his broader plan to end the war in Gaza and rebuild the territory. Under the proposal, the international force would deploy to Gaza following an Israeli military withdrawal, secure areas vacated by Israeli troops, help train new Palestinian police forces and support the distribution of humanitarian aid.
Much of Gaza remains devastated after nearly two years of war, which began following the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The implementation of the plan has stalled despite an announcement of progress at the end of July. Israel and Hamas remain divided over key conditions, with each side insisting that the other must first meet its commitments.
Trump’s envoy and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, held meetings with Hamas officials on Sunday and Israeli leaders in Jerusalem on Monday but left without a breakthrough, as both sides maintained their core demands.
A Board of Peace official described the past two weeks as a period of “significant progress” and said the board had sought additional funding commitments as a result.
The official, speaking anonymously, said the money was needed in part to establish a base for the stabilization forces inside Gaza and to support other reconstruction projects.
Countries involved in the reconstruction effort had initially pledged around $17 billion, although Reuters reported in April that only a small portion of the promised funds had actually been secured.
Five countries have so far committed troops to the ISF: Kosovo, Albania, Indonesia, Morocco and Kazakhstan, while Egypt and Jordan have pledged to help train Palestinian police. The timing of any deployment, however, remains unclear.
The second U.S. notification to Congress, valued at approximately $6.3 million, said Washington was redirecting nine armored personnel carriers previously intended for Nepal to support the ISF. Albania and Kosovo would be the first recipients of the equipment because of their planned role in the force.
Trump said on July 30 that Hamas had agreed to surrender its weapons in stages as Israeli forces withdrew from Gaza. Hamas said it had accepted the proposal but maintained that implementation depended on Israel first fulfilling its own commitments, including halting attacks and withdrawing its forces.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the arrangement, insisting that Israel will not withdraw until Hamas has been fully disarmed.
The ceasefire framework has reduced violence in Gaza but has not ended Israeli attacks or secured the disarmament of militant groups. According to Gaza health officials and the Israeli military, more than 1,200 Palestinians and four Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire was reached in October.
Netanyahu and Kushner also agreed that reconstruction should not begin until Hamas is disarmed, an Israeli official told Reuters earlier this week.
