Albania formalizes role in Gaza force, Kosovo says troops ready to deploy amid delays

US-backed Board of Peace says Albania to send liaison officers to region in November; Kosovo ministry tells ToI its explosives disposal team is ready, but awaits green light

By Nava Freiberg
  • Nava Freiberg is The Times of Israel's deputy diplomatic correspondent.
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Soldiers from Kosovo visit a military base in southern Israel as they prepare to join the Board of Peace's International Stabilization Force (ISF) for Gaza on July 12, 2026. (Board of Peace)

Albania finalized its participation agreement with the International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza over the weekend, with Albanian liaison officers expected to deploy to the region in November, according to a statement from the US-backed Board of Peace.

The development marks another small step toward assembling the multinational force meant to patrol the Strip under US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan, whose implementation has largely stalled amid disagreements over Hamas’s disarmament, Israeli troop withdrawals and the force’s deployment.

The agreement, signed on Friday at a ceremony attended by ISF commander US Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers and senior Albanian defense officials, commits Albania to providing “security operations support and operations planning capabilities” for the ISF mission in Gaza. The Board of Peace, which is tasked with overseeing the postwar Gaza plan, did not specify how many personnel Albania intends to contribute or when they might enter the Strip.

Meanwhile, Kosovo’s Defense Ministry told The Times of Israel this week that it is ready to deploy troops to Gaza, but that their arrival depends on the ISF’s readiness to receive them.

Kosovo’s planned contribution includes an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team, as well as a contingent commander serving as liaison officer and additional staff personnel, the ministry said in a written response to questions, without stating the total size of its contingent.

“Kosovo’s EOD team is ready and will deploy once ISF is prepared to receive it. The timing of deployment will be determined by ISF, in coordination with the relevant authorities and in line with mission readiness,” the ministry said, adding that partner forces conducted training for Kosovar personnel in May, following an April 26 reconnaissance visit to Gaza by a Kosovo Security Force team to assess the area where its troops are expected to operate.

“The specific tasks of Kosovo’s personnel will be defined in coordination with ISF as the mission develops,” the ministry said.

Kosovo formally signed its participation agreement with the Board of Peace and ISF on September 7, joining Morocco, Kazakhstan and other countries that have committed troops to the force, though the ISF’s deployment has faced repeated delays.

A small delegation of soldiers from Kosovo arrived in Israel in July, a month after a similar delegation arrived from Morocco, as part of preliminary preparations for the mission.

A Board of Peace official told The Times of Israel last week that up to 500 Moroccan personnel have also undergone ISF-led training since late August.

The growing preparations come despite continued uncertainty over when the ISF will begin operating in Gaza. Under the US-backed plan, the ISF is intended to help secure areas vacated by Israeli troops, support the disarmament process, train Palestinian police and protect humanitarian operations, while facilitating the entry of a committee of Palestinian technocrats meant to govern the territory.

In July, Israel’s security cabinet approved a legal framework for the limited entry of a contingent of roughly 200 international troops, subject to further Israeli approval. The force was initially expected to secure a proposed pilot humanitarian zone in the Rafah area of southern Gaza.

Tents are pictured by the rubble of collapsed buildings in the Jabalia camp for Palestinian refugees in the northern Gaza Strip on October 19, 2026. (Bashar Taleb/AFP)

However, no operational deployment has taken place, with the Board of Peace struggling to secure Israeli approval for several key elements of the plan, including a proposed ISF base near the Yellow Line on the Israeli-controlled side of the Strip.

The Board of Peace official expressed hope last week that progress would speed up following Israel’s elections this week, saying that the Board continues working with Israeli authorities despite political pressures surrounding the vote.

Disagreements remain between Israel and the Board over the sequencing of Israeli withdrawals and Gaza’s reconstruction, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserting that Hamas must be fully disarmed and Gaza demilitarized before either proceeds, while the Board has been pushing for a phased withdrawal tied to verified disarmament.

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