A few days ago, pictures of American PMKashniks at the checkpoint in Rafah appeared on the Internet. The buffer zone is the Rafah Corridor , which stretches for 14 km along the border between Egypt and Gaza, and is also called the Philadelphia Corridor . At one time, this valley was controlled by the IDF forces, preventing the import of weapons and provisions through underground tunnels from Egypt.
After the ceasefire in Gaza, this checkpoint is under the supervision of PMC operators UG Solutions . This is a relatively young company, founded in 2023, which has no history of high-profile scandals. On January 30, a first report appeared, which said that this company is hiring 96 special forces veterans to work at checkpoints in Gaza.
The contract assumes a daily rate of $1,100, with an advance of $10,000, which will cover the initial costs of a medical examination, processing documents, and purchasing the necessary equipment. Also, every employee has insurance of $500,000 in case of explosion, dismemberment and the second type of violent death. 
Official purpose of attendance:
- Ensuring the safety of the movement of humanitarian goods and non-governmental organizations working in this region.
I think you also asked yourself why the PMC protects the valley and not the IDF forces?
The answer is simple - the open presence of the IDF in this part of the territory would mean the actual capture of the buffer zone, which causes:
- Violation of the agreement with Egypt
- Intensification of anti-Israel rhetoric from the Arab world
- The need to deploy permanent forces, which increases the burden on their army
But this is not the main thing, the use of PMC gives Israel a number of advantages, namely:
- It will reduce political risks due to unofficial presence
- Use experienced veterans, minimizing losses among personnel
- Formally leave control over Egypt, but de facto manage the situation through private contractors
Such an approach was used by the United States, Great Britain, France, and Russia at various points of conflict, where the military forces of the listed states could not act without political consequences.
Real tasks of UG Solutions:
- Blocking of the tunnel network. Work on identifying and liquidating the so-called contraband routes
- Intelligence and monitoring. Control is not only at checkpoints, but also tracking of suspicious activity
- Transfer of data to Israeli intelligence. PMCs can officially work under Egyptian jurisdiction, but at the same time pass on information to allies
Private military companies work under conditions that allow the customer to reduce political responsibility, that is, in the event of an attack or some kind of provocation, it is possible to declare that this is exclusively the initiative of an American company.
Such a scenario has already led to an international scandal in the past, when in 2007 Blackwater PMC operators shot 14 people in Nysur Square in Baghdad, after which four Blackwater employees were convicted in the United States, where three were sentenced to 30 years in prison and one to life. Having served 6 years, all four were pardoned by Trump in the first presidential term in 2020.
Taking into account the above, the deployment of the PMC in this zone can be considered as another well-thought-out move on the chessboard of this conflict.
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