U.S. private security contractors will operate key Gaza checkpoint
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Displaced Palestinians return to their houses after the ceasefire and hostage-prisoner swap deal between Hamas and Israel at Bureij refugee camp in Deir al-Balah, Gaza, on Jan. 20. Photo: Ali Jadallah/Anadolu via Getty Images
U.S. private security contractors will start in the coming days to operate a key Gaza checkpoint and deploy armed guards to the enclave, according to two Israeli officials and a source with direct knowledge.
Why it matters: It will be the first time in decades that U.S. private security companies will operate in Gaza.
- The U.S. companies will operate in Gaza as part of a multinational consortium that has been established under the Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal with the backing of its brokers: the U.S., Egypt and Qatar.
- The role of the U.S. contractors will be to inspect Palestinian vehicles that move from southern Gaza to northern Gaza and make sure no rockets or other heavy weapons are being transferred.
Flashback: In 2003 three U.S. government security guards were killed in an attack on a U.S. convoy in Gaza. Israeli officials said at the time that Hamas was behind the attack.
- Since then there have been significant limitations on any U.S. government or U.S. government-backed activity in Gaza due to security reasons.
Driving the news: The establishment of the multinational security consortium has been negotiated as part of the Gaza deal and was needed to solve a key sticking point around the movement of displaced Palestinians back to northern Gaza.
- Israel demanded that all the Palestinians who will move north will go through security checks at the Netzarim corridor — a key road south of Gaza City. Hamas refused.
- The compromise was that vehicles would be able to go to northern Gaza only through one road and would have to be inspected at a checkpoint on the Netzarim corridor operated by a third party.
- "The consortium's role is to oversee, manage, and secure a critical vehicle checkpoint along Salah al-Din Road, facilitating the safe return of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza. The consortium aims to ensure orderly vehicle movement while preventing the transport of weapons northward, in line with the ceasefire terms," a source familiar with the issue said.
Zoom in: The consortium is made up of three private companies appointed that were selected by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar with the consent of Israel and Hamas.
- One U.S. company that is part of the project is Safe Reach Solutions (SRS) — a strategic planning and logistics company. SRS drafted the operational plan for the checkpoint.
- The second company is UG Solutions — a U.S. private security company that operates armed guards around the world. Some of the guards are Americans who served in U.S. military special forces and others have various foreign nationalities, a source familiar with the issue said.
- The third company is an Egyptian security company, which has been approved by the Egyptian intelligence service and that will also deploy security guards to Gaza, a senior Israeli official said.
- "There may be additional members and nationalities in the future," a source familiar with the issue said.
What to watch: The U.S. contractors are expected to operate in Gaza until the end of the first phase of the hostage deal — whether as a result of an agreement on the second phase of the deal that includes a full Israeli pullout from Gaza or as a result of a break down in the negotiations and renewed fighting.
What they are saying: The source familiar with the issue said the multinational makeup of the consortium "reflects the international community's support for the ceasefire."
- "The consortium emphasizes its impartiality and commitment to peace, serving as a trusted partner in supporting the ceasefire's implementation and promoting long-term stability in Gaza," the source said.
