U.S. officials say international troops could soon be deployed in Gaza

International troops could be deployed in the Gaza Strip as early as next month to form a UN-authorized stabilization force, two U.S. officials told Reuters, but it remains unclear how Palestinian militants Hamas will be disarmed.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the International Stabilisation Force (ISF) would not fight Hamas. They said many countries had expressed interest in contributing and Washington is currently working out the size of the ISF, composition, housing, training and rules of engagement.

An American two-star general is being considered to lead the ISF but no decisions have been made, the officials said. 

Deployment of the force is a key part of the next phase of U.S. President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan. Under the first phase, a fragile ceasefire in the two-year war began on October 10 and Hamas has released hostages and Israel has freed detained Palestinians. 

The United States Central Command will host a conference in Doha on December 16 with partner nations to plan the ISF for Gaza, Reuters also reported on Friday, citing unnamed U.S. officials.

More than 25 countries are expected to send representatives to the conference, which will include sessions on the command structure and other issues related to the Gaza force, it said.

"There is a lot of quiet planning that's going on behind the scenes right now for phase two of the peace deal," White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday. "We want to ensure an enduring and lasting peace."

Indonesia has said it is prepared to deploy up to 20,000 troops to take on health and construction-related tasks in Gaza.

Husam Badran, a member of Hamas' political bureau, told Xinhua on Thursday that Palestinian factions in Gaza have given initial approval for a potential international force in the territory, provided its mandate is limited to "monitoring the ceasefire and maintaining a presence along the borders to separate the two sides."

Badran said the implementation of the current agreement should not contradict Palestinian interests and reaffirmed that "any talk about disarming the resistance is rejected."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that the second phase would move toward demilitarization and disarmament.

UN agency warns displaced Gazans face floods

Hundreds of thousands of displaced Gazans face flooding of their tents and shelters by heavy rains, and materials for shelters and sandbags are not being allowed to enter the enclave, the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Friday.

Torrential rain swept across Gaza on Thursday, flooding tents sheltering families displaced by two years of war, and leading to the death of a baby girl due to exposure, local health officials said.

A total of 14 Palestinians are dead as a result of the storm, with multiple buildings having collapsed, Palestine's official WAFA news agency reported on Friday.

Nearly 795,000 displaced people are at heightened risk of potentially dangerous flooding in low-lying, rubble-filled areas where families are living in unsafe shelters, the IOM said. Insufficient drainage and waste management also heightened the risk of disease outbreak, the UN agency added.

(With input from Reuters, Xinhua)