Israel blocks construction of key Gaza base created by Trump peace board

Trump, surrounded by key officials from other countries, shows his Board of Peace’s founding charter at a meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January. Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenTrump, surrounded by key officials from other countries, shows his Board of Peace’s founding charter at a meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January. Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty ImagesIsrael blocks construction of key Gaza base created by Trump peace boardSource tells Guardian Israel has not permitted US-led project to house 150 international troops to move forward

Israel is refusing to allow a key military outpost project for Donald Trump’s Board of Peace to proceed in Gaza, the Guardian has learned.

In early August, the Board of Peace, the international organization authorized in 2025 by the UN and chaired by the US president, issued its first construction contract for Gaza: Louisiana-based Arkel International would construct a military outpost for 150 international troops that would be the vanguard of an international stabilization force.

Two months later, Israel has still not permitted the contract to move forward, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. Contractors and trucks are not being allowed to cross into Gaza and begin the work. “Israel won’t open the border,” they said.

A Board of Peace spokesperson declined to comment. Neither the Israeli Defense Forces nor the Israeli government responded to requests for comment.

Israel’s war in Gaza is one of the eight wars Trump claims to have resolved. He listed it again last week in a screed on social media, protesting that it was unfair he had not won the Nobel peace prize.

The Board of Peace, formed in the wake of an October 2025 ceasefire in Gaza, is central to Trump’s claims to have ended the conflict.

Arkel’s planned “mission support site temporary outpost” is decidedly rudimentary: a fortified position of about 100 meters by 100 meters, at a site that was once part of the controversial and now defunct Gaza Humanitarian Foundation project, according to the person familiar with the matter. The US-backed GHF operated in Gaza from May 2025 till October 2025 to deliver aid protected by private contractors.

The base would host short rotating deployments of a well-armed force of 150 troops in Gaza, the person said. They would come from a larger component of 500 sent already from Morocco and Kosovo.

But without this contract, the source said, the rest of the Board of Peace program cannot launch. Israel’s refusal to allow Arkel, the contractor, to build the base, essentially cuts the Board of Peace off at the legs.

“You can’t get in without [an international stabilization force (ISF)]. You can’t rebuild,” the person said. “There’s no security. There’s no deliveries of construction equipment. You can’t even start putting utilities. You can’t start putting in basic life-support facilities you know because without the ISF you can’t go in.”

The person familiar with the matter said the Board of Peace believes that Israel’s government will let the project proceed after the Israeli elections, which are scheduled for 27 October.

The controversial Board of Peace has a unique structure. Trump is designated as chair for life. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is an executive board member, as is real estate developer Steve Witkoff, who Trump has appointed as a mediator in various international disputes.

Though many western democracies have kept their distance from the Board of Peace, 28 countries joined as founding members earlier this year. Kushner has unveiled renderings of a futuristic vision of Gaza, where the city was envisioned as a pristine luxury waterfront resort city with hi-tech skyscrapers looking out over the Mediterranean.

On 23 September the group unveiled what it said was a six-month, $2.45bn plan, as the first step towards reconstruction with a 10-year estimated cost of $71bn.

There were lofty promises and requests for contributions. “Today we can point to real progress,” announced Witkoff.

A US senior adviser to the board, Aryeh Lightstone, announced a new fund would be started. “Your high net-worth donations will go directly to the Palestinian people,” he said. Lightstone has traveled in Trump circles since the president’s first term. He officiated as a rabbi at the 2020 wedding of Trump adviser Stephen Miller to Katie Miller.

Israel has continued strikes in Gaza since the October ceasefire, killing approximately 1,400 people over that time, according to Gaza health authorities.