Sir Tony Blair was one of just two Europeans named by President Trump on Friday night on the Board of Peace executive to oversee Gaza’s revival.

Blair has a seat on both the executive board chaired by Trump and a second “Gaza executive board” created to support a high representative, Nickolay Mladenov, a former Bulgarian foreign minister who will act as the liaison with a technocratic committee to run Gaza day-to-day.

The announcement of the boards, both also including Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and his special peace envoy Steve Witkoff, came as a surprise because neither included any European leaders, as had previously been suggested.

However, a senior source told The Times: “The Board of Peace will be comprised of serving world leaders and chaired by President Trump. Tony Blair will be on its executive board, which will sit under the Board of Peace and which will be the operational arm of the Board of Peace.”

Trump’s administration is looking for each country represented on his peace board to pay $1 billion, according to Bloomberg News.

“The Board of Peace has been formed,” Trump told the press aboard Air Force One. “Basically, it’s the most important leaders of the most important nations.” Trump has also described the board as the “greatest and most prestigious board ever assembled at any time, any place”.

Sir Keir Starmer may yet be named among other international leaders on the full board. Javier Milei, the Argentinian president, posted online his invitation letter to join and said it would be an honour to do so. A spokesman for President Erdogan of Turkey confirmed his invitation. Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, will also take part, a Canadian official said.

The other names on the “founding executive board” were Marco Rubio, the secretary of state; Ajay Banga, the Indian-born naturalised American who heads the World Bank; Marc Rowan, a billionaire businessman and restaurateur who has donated to Trump’s campaigns; and Robert Gabriel, a former Fox News producer and deputy national security adviser.

Gazans react to the Board of Peace announcement

On Saturday, Israel’s government said it objected to the announcement and that it “was not coordinated with Israel and is contrary to its policy”. The statement did not give further details. Israel has a strained relationship with Turkey and is not likely to welcome the invitation to Erdogan. The statement also said that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu had told the foreign ministry to contact Rubio.

The White House said: “Each executive board member will oversee a defined portfolio critical to Gaza’s stabilisation and long-term success, including, but not limited to, governance capacity-building, regional relations, reconstruction, investment attraction, large-scale funding, and capital mobilisation.”

It added that “additional executive board and Gaza executive board members will be announced over the coming weeks”.

So far on the Gaza executive board, in addition to Blair, Kushner, Rowan and Witkoff, there will also be Hakan Fidan, the foreign affairs minister of Turkey; Ali al-Thawadi, a ministerial level diplomat from Qatar; Egypt’s intelligence services chief General Hassan Rashad; Reem al-Hashimy, the United Arab Emirates minister of state for international cooperation; Yakir Gabay, a Cypriot property billionaire; and Sigrid Kaag, a Dutch politician who is the UN special co-ordinator for the Middle East peace process.

Blair said in a statement on Saturday that he was “honoured” to be appointed to the executive board as he praised Trump’s 20-point peace plan as an “extraordinary achievement”.

“We know the implementation of the plan will take enormous commitment and hard work,” he said. “For Gaza and its people, we want a Gaza which does not reconstruct Gaza as it was but as it could and should be. And for the Israelis we want to ensure that the horrific events of October 7, 2023, are never repeated.”

Blair’s central involvement shows he has overcome doubts expressed in the Middle East and also by Trump. In October, the US president said: “I’ve always liked Tony, but I want to find out that he’s an acceptable choice to everybody. I want to find out that Tony would be popular with all because I just don’t know that.”

It was previously reported that Blair was no longer a contender for Trump’s board after Arab and Muslim states objected to his participation. The Financial Times, quoting unnamed people familiar with the matter, said that the former prime minister was out of the running because of his reputation in the Middle East, primarily over his support and British involvement in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The board will consider how to disarm Hamas, form a government, attract investment and rebuild Gaza.

“The United States remains fully committed to supporting this transitional framework, working in close partnership with Israel, key Arab nations, and the international community,” the White House said.

• Phase two of the peace plan is a fantasy for freezing Gazans

It said that a 15-member committee would take over from Hamas in running Gaza, known as the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), led by Ali Shaath, “a widely respected technocratic leader who will oversee the restoration of core public services, the rebuilding of civil institutions, and the stabilisation of daily life in Gaza, while laying the foundation for long-term, self-sustaining governance”.

It added: “Dr Shaath brings deep experience in public administration, economic development, and international engagement, and is widely respected for his pragmatic, technocratic leadership and understanding of Gaza’s institutional realities.”

Shaath, who is from Gaza, was formerly deputy transportation minister for the Palestinian Authority.

Trump also named the US major-general Jasper Jeffers to head the International Stabilisation Force (ISF) in Gaza. Jeffers, commander of the Special Operations Command Central, based in Florida, will “lead security operations, support comprehensive demilitarisation, and enable the safe delivery of humanitarian aid and reconstruction materials”.

The announcements follow the declaration by Witkoff that Trump’s peace plan had entered its second phase, which requires full Hamas disarmament.