Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said Monday that Washington has steadfast support for Israel, but called on the Israeli military to do more to protect civilians in Gaza.
Speaking at a news conference in Tel Aviv, Austin stressed that Hamas is a terrorist group that should never again be able to attack Israel from the Gaza Strip.
The Pentagon chief’s visit comes amid growing concern from foreign governments and international organizations about the deaths of civilians in Gaza from Israeli bombing, as well as growing hunger and poverty in the enclave.
Austin said he discussed the issue of protecting civilians with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. In addition, the subject of discussion was the transition from large-scale combat operations to lower-intensity operations.
The United States “will continue to urge the protection of civilians during conflict and to increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza,” Austin said.
Gallant said Israel would gradually move to the next phase of military operations in Gaza, and displaced people would likely be able to return, first to the north of the enclave.
Neither Austin nor Gallant gave a timeline for the transition to operations, which Austin described as “more of a surgical procedure.”
The Pentagon chief, as well as other US officials, have called on Israel to focus on targeting Hamas leadership based on intelligence.
“This does not mean stopping the operation. It … means you’re more precise, (that) you’re … focused on a specific goal,” Austin said.
Residents of the northern Gaza Strip largely followed Israeli instructions to evacuate to the south.
“In each area where we complete our operations, we will be able to gradually move to the next stage and begin working to return the local population,” Gallant said at a joint news conference in Tel Aviv. “This means it can be achieved faster in the north than in the south,” published on the official US Department of Defense website.
Austin also reaffirmed the US commitment to a two-state solution to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, saying both Israelis and Palestinians “deserve a horizon of hope.”
