Arab states consider revival of plan to create Nato-style military force

Arab nations are considering an Egyptian proposal to establish a joint military force comprising troops and arms contributed by members of the Arab League, sources have told The National.

The proposal, first mooted in 2015, is being resurrected in response to Israel's strike on the Qatari capital of Doha which targeted senior Hamas leaders.

The attack sparked strong condemnation from Arab nations as well as Western powers.

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The proposal to create a united, Nato-style military force was first presented by Egypt at a 2015 Arab summit held in Sharm El Sheikh. It was adopted in principle, but progress was not made in follow-up meetings, reportedly because of differences over a command structure and headquarters for the force.

At the time, the Egyptian proposal was drafted in response to the takeover of large areas of Yemen by the Iran-backed Houthis. A Saudi-led coalition was established instead to fight on the side of Yemen's internationally-recognised government.

Egypt is now understood to be pushing for Cairo to be the force's headquarters. Egypt, which boasts the Middle East's largest army, also wants the commander's position to rotate among the 22 members of the Arab League, with an Egyptian serving the first term. A civilian would serve as secretary-general.

The force would be made up of naval, air and ground units and boast an unspecified number of elite troops trained as commandos and in counterterrorism tactics, the sources said. The force would also take up peacekeeping missions in Arab countries.

Besides the overall commander, the force would have a chief of staff selected from one of the participating nations. There would also be a planning council that takes care of training, logistics and the harmonising of weapon systems.

The size of contributions towards the force would vary from one country to another depending on the size of its military and its capabilities.

The use of force in combat or peacekeeping missions would require a formal request by the concerned nation and would require the approval of the commander and chief of staff after consultations with all participating nations.

The Arab League, founded in 1945 and headquartered in Cairo, has for decades had a joint defence agreement binding its members. Forces drawn from the Egyptian and other Arab militaries have frequently held joint war games over the past decade. Combat units from several Arab nations fought alongside Jordanian, Syrian and Egyptian troops in wars against Israel.

Previous attempts to create a permanent, Nato-style Arab force have come to nothing due to considerations over sovereignty, conflicting interests and command structure.

The joint Arab force proposal is understood to have been discussed over recent days between Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and several Arab leaders.

The talks come ahead of the two-day Arab-Islamic summit in Doha on Sunday and Monday to formulate a unified response to Israel's attack on Qatar. The joint Arab force idea, sources said, will probably be discussed on the summit's sidelines.

The force would “deal with security threats and terrorism or anyone who poses a threat to the Arab world's safety and stability,” one of the sources said.

The resurrection of the proposal now takes on added significance given the turmoil roiling the Middle East.

The war in Gaza will enter its third year next month, with Israel responding to a deadly Hamas-led attack in October 2023 with a devastating military campaign that has killed more than 64,000 Palestinians and laid to waste most of the coastal enclave.

The war has also led to Israel fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and a 12-day war with sworn enemy Iran. Israeli strikes and incursions have also continued in Syria, despite the fall of the Assad regime late last year.

With Israel enjoying ironclad support from the US under President Donald Trump, many in the Arab world now believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will stop at nothing in the battle against perceived enemies across the region and that the Arabs need to close ranks more than ever before.