US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will begin visiting Israel and two countries in the Persian Gulf this week, as US President Joe Biden administration officials pressure Israel “to end its large-scale ground and air campaign in the Gaza Strip within weeks and move to a more focused phase in its war against Hamas,” according to statements by American officials.

In conjunction with the start of the visit, the British Foreign Minister, David Cameron, and the German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbueck, stated in a joint opinion article in the Sunday Times newspaper (Sunday) demanding the activation of a sustainable ceasefire in Gaza, which indicates the isolation of the administration of US President Biden in its dedicated position in support of the Israeli genocidal war on the Palestinians in Gaza.

Austin will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant to discuss the details of “when and how Israeli forces will implement a new phase that American officials envision will include smaller groups of elite forces that will move inside and outside the country,” while American officials said that “the United States will carry out more precise missions.” It relies on intelligence to find and kill Hamas leaders, rescue hostages, and destroy tunnels,” according to the New York Times.

According to the newspaper, “A senior Pentagon official said that while the minister is expected to express support for the Israeli campaign to destroy Hamas’ ability to launch military operations, he will also reinforce the importance of taking civilian safety into account during operations and the urgent need to increase the delivery of humanitarian aid.”

As a former head of the Pentagon's Central Command, Austin is keenly aware of the hard lessons the US armed forces have learned in the past two decades as they transitioned from major ground wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to more targeted operations. “He wants to share those lessons with Israeli officials,” the Pentagon official told the New York Times on condition of anonymity to discuss internal assessments.

In a sign of how critical this moment in the war is, General Charles Brown Jr., Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will join Austin in Israel.

Ten weeks after the initial Hamas attack (October 7) on Israel, the death toll in the Gaza Strip rose to nearly 20,000 people, most of them women and children, according to local health officials, while international human rights groups warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis there. The danger faced by people kidnapped by Hamas and other armed groups - and there are believed to be at least 100 individuals still detained - was clear on Friday, when Israeli forces mistakenly killed three Israeli hostages.

Austin's visit, his second to Israel since October 7, is considered part of full pressure by the US administration to urge Israel to end the high-intensity part of the war. Jake Sullivan, President Biden's national security adviser, met with Israeli leaders on Thursday about the direction of the conflict. Sullivan did not set a timetable, but US officials said Biden wants Israel to shift to more precise tactics within about three weeks.

Secretary Austin will also travel to Bahrain, the US Navy's 5th Fleet base, to discuss freedom of navigation and maritime security in the region. The United States is in discussions with its allies to expand a naval task force to guard ships passing through the Red Sea after several recent attacks by Houthi rebels on commercial ships in what appears to be an escalating extension of Israel's war with Hamas to  Iran-sponsored Proxy forces.

Mr. Austin will then visit Qatar, where the Pentagon operates a major command center at Al Udeid Air Base. Austin will meet with senior Qatari officials who played an important role in facilitating the release of hostages taken by Hamas fighters on October 7.