Overview
- Board of Peace high representative Nickolay Mladenov told the U.N. Security Council on May 21 that Gaza risks becoming a permanently divided territory with Hamas holding military and administrative control over about 2 million people in less than half the enclave.
- The Board’s first report says the principal obstacle to the ceasefire roadmap is Hamas’ refusal to accept verified, sequenced decommissioning of weapons while Israeli forces continue to control roughly 60% of Gaza.
- Mladenov asked the Security Council to use “every means at its disposal” to press Hamas to disarm and separately urged Israel to uphold its ceasefire obligations and ease restrictions that limit humanitarian access.
- Humanitarian supplies remain constrained and donor pledges have not been disbursed at scale, with the Board warning that large-scale reconstruction financing will not flow until weapons are laid down and security benchmarks are met.
- The Board of Peace was set up by President Donald Trump to oversee a phased plan that moves weapons to a transitional administration, installs a technocratic civilian authority, and ties Israeli withdrawals to verified security steps, a process that has stalled and could prolong displacement and rubble for Gazan civilians.