At the heart of President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace framework, announced on 29 September 2025, lies the proposed International Stabilisation Force (ISF), a US-backed experiment in post-war governance that departs sharply from traditional UN peacekeeping models. Envisaged as both a security guarantor and an enforcement mechanism for Gaza’s demilitarisation, the ISF has emerged as the most controversial pillar of the Trump-brokered deal.
While several potential troop-contributing countries remain cautious, particularly about any mandate involving the disarmament of Hamas, Washington has publicly signalled Pakistan as a possible cornerstone of the force. This has raised a series of unresolved questions: How far can Pakistan go amid intense domestic opposition and regional overstretch? Can the ISF impose stability without triggering renewed violence? And what does this move reveal about the trajectory of US-Pakistan relations, and how should India assess the implications for its strategic interests in West Asia and South Asia?
As Gaza moves from active war to a fragile political standoff, the ISF represents either an attempt to reshape post-conflict stabilisation or a high-risk experiment with few clear exit options.