UK (Parliament Political Magazine) – UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper confirmed Britain will not send troops to monitor the Gaza ceasefire. The US, Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey help oversee the truce, while the E3 leaders back humanitarian aid.
As BBC News reported, UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has confirmed there are no plans to send British troops to join a multinational force monitoring the Gaza ceasefire from Israel. During talks with foreign ministers in Paris, she said the UK will keep supporting peace efforts through other means, such as helping attract private investment to rebuild Gaza.
The statement came after Israel’s military announced that the first phase of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas, including the release of hostages, had begun. The United States is redeploying up to 200 troops already stationed in the Middle East to Israel to help set up a civil-military coordination centre. The centre will track the ceasefire’s progress and manage humanitarian aid deliveries. US officials stressed that no American soldiers will enter Gaza.
“This is still a fragile process, but it is one there is a huge momentum behind and a huge commitment to, so we have to make it work,”
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said.
What role will the UK, US, and E3 play in Gaza ceasefire monitoring?
Forces from Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey will also take part in monitoring the truce and reporting violations. In an interview with Euronews, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Europe had become “essentially irrelevant” in the ceasefire process and criticised countries such as the UK for recognising a Palestinian state, calling it an “ultimate reward to Islamists.”
Cooper replied that the UK has had disagreements with Israel over this issue, but that
“The point now is that we need countries coming together to make peace a reality and to actually make it happen”.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said Britain has already played an important part in reaching the current stage of the Gaza peace process. She explained that the UK has helped shape proposals under the wider peace framework and supported progress through its formal recognition of a Palestinian state.
Cooper added that London will now work with Arab nations to attract new financial investment into Gaza, which has been left in ruins after almost 2 years of Israeli bombardment. She said that rebuilding the area’s infrastructure and economy is essential for long-term stability.
On Friday, Oct 10, 2025, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer joined the leaders of France and Germany in backing major humanitarian aid efforts during the ceasefire. The 3 leaders, known as the E3, said they are ready to support the next stages of the plan and help bring it forward.
Figures from Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry report that more than 67,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have been killed in Israel’s ongoing military campaign. Starmer said Britain had “played an important part behind the scenes” to help move the peace talks forward.
Cooper travelled to Paris on Thursday, Oct 9, 2025, with her German counterpart after attending a Western Balkans foreign ministers’ meeting near Belfast, where they discussed lessons from earlier peace processes.
Speaking at a press conference on a visit to Mumbai, he added that the UK now
“stands ready to play our part in implementing this [the peace plan], again with others, as we go forward”
Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey urged the UK to take a “maximum role” in ensuring that the ceasefire holds and peace efforts continue.
“What we know is that countries can come together to support peace, to resolve conflict, to rebuild nations,”
she said, and added that she believed the reflections could help in Gaza.
“We’re prepared to play our part; the UK must step up,”
Sir Ed said, and added that the UK should push to contribute to a peacekeeping force.
The Gaza conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a major attack that killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 hostages. Israel responded with a large military campaign that has continued into 2025, causing widespread destruction and heavy civilian losses.
Peace efforts led by the United States, Egypt, and Qatar started in late 2023 but faced delays over issues like hostages and security. The UK, France, and Germany, known as the E3, later joined the talks to push for a ceasefire.
