Trump’s Gaza board accused of creating legal black hole to protect officials and contractors

Donald Trump’s so-called Board of Peace is planning to grant itself sweeping legal immunity for its work in Gaza, according to a draft resolution obtained by the Guardian. Details uncovered about the resolution has raised concerns that the US-backed body could shield its officials, soldiers and contractors from legal action if Palestinians are killed, injured, abused or stripped of property.  

The draft resolution, labelled “sensitive but unclassified”, would protect members of the Board of Peace, its administrative affiliate, the Office of the High Representative (OHR), Palestinian technocrats, international military forces and non-resident contractors from “any arrest, detention or legal proceedings in the courts or other entities in Gaza,” the Guardian reported.  

The document would also allow the organisation to obtain public property in Gaza “free of charge”, a clause legal experts warned could open the door to the seizure of Palestinian land, buildings and facilities without consent or compensation.  

The Board of Peace, chaired by Trump, was authorised by the UN Security Council to oversee Gaza’s administration until 31 December, 2027. Its seven-member executive board includes Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, special envoy Steve Witkoff, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and national security adviser Marco Rubio.

“It looks like an attempt to exempt the board, and all of its personnel, from accountability for potential legal violations,” said Emily Schaeffer Omer-Man, an expert in litigating international humanitarian law in Israeli, American and foreign courts.

The draft’s section on “Third Party Liability/Claims” would allow the Board of Peace itself to consider and adjudicate claims for “property loss or damage and for personal injury, illness or death” arising from its operations in Gaza. Critics said this would leave the body to judge complaints against itself.

“They are basically saying there’s no external oversight, including applicable international law regarding occupation,” said Noura Erakat, an international law professor at Rutgers University. “It’s creating a legal system unto itself.”

The fears are sharpened by the record of US-led reconstruction and security operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, where contractors including Blackwater and KBR faced litigation in US courts after allegations of civilian killings, abuse and corruption. Any Gaza reconstruction scheme involving foreign contractors, private security firms and military forces could face similar risks, especially in a territory already devastated by genocide, mass displacement and famine.

Contractors are said to have sought clarity over potential legal protections for work in Gaza, where the Board of Peace has solicited bids for rubble removal, security and reconstruction. Kushner has described plans to transform Gaza into a site of luxury resorts, hi-tech cities and regional business hubs.

“I would think any company would want a very clear legal framework,” said Doug Brooks, president emeritus of the International Stability Operations Association. “There are liability issues any serious American company would want to be clear about.”

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One American security contractor said that Israeli officials do not want to negotiate a status of forces agreement in Gaza because Israel does not want to recognise Gaza as a state.

“It’s pretty important for political and legal cover and insurance,” the contractor said. “It gives the people of Gaza clarity and comfort around how they’ll be treated and dealt with by contractors they may engage with.”

Instead, the leaked draft appears to create an internal immunity framework for the Board of Peace without clear Palestinian consent, external judicial review or an agreed legal framework governing foreign forces and contractors in the enclave.