The European Union wants to train up to 3,000 Palestinian police officers in Gaza under a scheme similar to one it already runs in the occupied West Bank, an EU official said on Wednesday.
There will be a "need to stabilise Gaza with an important police force" if the current ceasefire endures, said the official, who was granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter.
The UN Security Council voted on Monday in favour of a US-drafted resolution bolstering President Donald Trump's plan for Gaza — which has allowed a fragile ceasefire to hold between Israel and Palestinian resistance group Hamas since October 10.
The peace plan notably authorises the creation of an international force that would work with Israel and Egypt and newly-trained Palestinian police to help secure border areas and demilitarise Gaza.
The EU has struggled to exert influence during Israel's two-year war on Gaza due to splits within the bloc between countries supporting Tel Aviv and those closer to the Palestinians.
Keen to reclaim a role in the region, the EU will propose training Palestinian police officers — who are not affiliated with Hamas — as part of efforts to restore long-term security in the territory.
Palestinian Authority reforms
Around 7,000 police in Gaza are still on the payroll of the Palestinian Authority (PA), which governs the occupied West Bank, the official said. Many have retired or are unable to work, but about 3,000 could be trained, he added.
The training would take place outside of Gaza, he said.
The EU has financed a police training mission in the occupied West Bank since 2006, with a budget of around 13 million euros ($15 million).
EU foreign ministers are due to discuss the training proposal during talks on Thursday in Brussels. The bloc will also host a Palestinian donor conference the same day, bringing together around 60 delegations, including Arab states — but not Israel.
The conference will notably allow participants to "take stock" of progress on reforms by the Palestinian Authority, the official said.
The EU is the PA's main financial backer but has made future aid conditional on reforms, which it considers essential for the Authority to play its part in a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which Europe has long advocated.
