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Uganda on Thursday authorised the deployment of soldiers to the Gaza Strip as part of the International Stabilisation Force (ISF) under the disarmament agreement reached at the end of July.
This international force would be part of an initiative by the Board of Peace, an organisation created by US President Donald Trump and tasked, among other things, with preparing for the post-war period.
The Ugandan Parliament passed a motion supporting President Yoweri Museveni’s decision to “deploy the Uganda People’s Defence Forces in the Gaza Strip for a peacekeeping mission”.
General Henry Matsiko welcomed the decision, telling parliament: “I’m very, very proud as Ugandans that Uganda People’s Defence Forces is viewed as the anchor of stability in a sea of turbulence, regionally and now globally.”
Four other countries have indicated they are willing to join the force — Morocco, Kosovo, Albania and Kazakhstan, a Board of Peace source told AFP in July.
They added that the ISF would be responsible for securing a “humanitarian zone” intended to accommodate tens of thousands of Palestinians subject to prior vetting.
Palestinians would then be able to move freely in and out of the area, the source said, although the principle of closed humanitarian zones — discussed for several months — has raised concerns within the humanitarian community.
But while the Ugandan parliament passed the motion, there was some pushback.
“The matter of deploying our soldiers to a very risky place like Gaza, where Israel strikes every now and again, cannot be just casually passed here,” said MP Karim Masaba.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had not accepted the latest road map for the Gaza Strip, even after receiving assurances that an Israeli pullout would only happen after Hamas disarms.
Uganda’s army chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba has repeatedly published messages of support for Israel in recent months.
Known for his controversial social media posts, the president’s son posted on X in January that “Israel is in our blood… We will always stand by our brethren in Israel.”
On Saturday, he inaugurated a statue of Yoni Netanyahu, the older brother of Israel’s current PM, who was killed 50 years ago during the Israeli raid on Entebbe airport in Uganda, then ruled by strongman Idi Amin.
On July 4, 1976, Israeli commandos freed more than 100 hostages held by pro-Palestinian hijackers and Ugandan soldiers.
Yoni Netanyahu, who led the rescue team, was the only Israeli soldier killed in the operation.
