Morocco signs agreement advancing eventual deployment of troops in Gaza

Morocco has signed an agreement to participate in the International Stabilization Force (ISF) for Gaza, state media reports.

The agreement was signed in Rabat at a meeting attended by Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, senior defense officials and Board of Peace envoy for ​Gaza Nickolay ​Mladenov, and with a delegation including the commander of the ISF, the state news agency MAP says.

The agreement “reflects the shared determination to contribute, through concrete humanitarian and security actions, to the establishment of a climate of peace and security in the region,” MAP quoted a statement from the Moroccan defense administration as saying.

The Board of Peace and ISF leadership welcomed Morocco’s decision to join the initiative, citing its planned deployment of senior military officers, gendarmerie and police personnel, as well as the creation of a military field hospital, MAP says.

Morocco has been listed among ISF contributing countries since January, so today’s agreement appears to be more of a formality.

Morocco today formally signed its Participating Country Agreement with the International Stabilization Force. Moroccan forces will support humanitarian aid delivery to Gaza and help train the Palestinian Police Force. The Board of Peace and the #ISF thank His Majesty King… pic.twitter.com/FKE1ILWKCY

— Board of Peace (@BoardOfPeace) July 15, 2026

While three other countries — Albania, Kazakhstan and Kosovo — have also agreed to contribute troops to the ISF — Morocco is slated to be the first of them to actually deploy troops in Gaza, officials familiar with the Board of Peace’s plans have told The Times of Israel.

The Board of Peace envisions Moroccan troops will be tasked with securing the borders of a humanitarian pilot zone that the Board of Peace aims to establish in the area of the flattened southern Gaza city of Rafah, the officials said.

But there is no timeline for when construction of that humanitarian zone will actually begin, with a senior Arab official familiar with the matter saying no major progress is expected until after the October Israeli elections, since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has become increasingly reticent to cooperate with any Gaza relief projects as the vote approaches.

Among the steps that Israel has dragged its feet on advancing has been the signing of Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with each ISF contributing country in order to establish the legal guardrails of foreign military personnel stationed abroad. ISF troops can’t deploy without those agreements being signed.

Another source familiar with the matter said ground is unlikely to break on the humanitarian pilot zone until early 2027, meaning the ISF won’t deploy before then regardless.

In the meantime, small delegations from ISF contributing countries are arriving to Israel and operating out of a base in the country’s south.

Reuters contributed to this report.