Israel bars US contractor from Gaza, blocking base for Moroccan and Kosovan troops

Israel is blocking US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace from building a military base in Gaza to house troops from Morocco and Kosovo, the Guardian has reported. In August, the board awarded US-based Arkel International its first Gaza construction contract. The company was tasked with building a military outpost for 150 troops who would form the vanguard of a controversial international stabilisation force comprised of countries friendly to Israel. Two months later, Israel still refuses to let the contractor enter Gaza or begin construction, the British newspaper reported. “Israel won’t open the border,” a person familiar with the matter told the Guardian. Read more: Israel bars US contractor from Gaza, blocking base for Moroccan and Kosovan troops US President Donald Trump speaks during a signing ceremony at the inaugural meeting of the 'Board of Peace' at the US Institute of Peace in Washington, DC, on 19 February (AFP)