In recent days, the American administration and pro-Israel governments in Europe have increased their pressure on Israel in order to end the widespread fighting in the Gaza Strip within weeks, and replace it with concentrated raids and the assassination of Hamas leaders. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who is currently visiting Israel, and White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who visited the country last week, conveyed a clear message on this issue to members of the war cabinet.

Publicly, the administration in Washington continues to express full support for Israel's goals. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said over the weekend that his administration believes the war "could last several months." However, Kirby explained that the United States and Israel considered “moving from a very aggressive military operation to less intense and more precise military operations.”

After his meeting with Defense Secretary Gallant, Austin issued a short statement, stating that they discussed the goals of the war, the stages, and the preservation of civilians. According to an Israeli source familiar with the details of the meeting, Austin made it clear that the current phase of the war, in which large army forces are moving deep into Gaza and causing widespread damage to civilian infrastructure, must stop at the beginning of 2024. The source added in an interview with: Haaretz said: “Ostin did not give an exact date, but the message was very clear.”

In a briefing with the media, before Austin's arrival, an American security source said that the minister's experience, which he accumulated in Afghanistan and Iraq when he was an army commander, is related to the dilemma in which Israel is floundering today. The source explained that "Austin can provide an important point of view on these issues, and this is what he wants to do," and continued, "He wants to talk with the Israelis about the means of transition between the various stages of the fighting."

The Biden administration is not alone in conveying messages to Israel in recent days. The governments of Britain and Germany, two pro-Israel countries in the West, called at the beginning of the week for action towards a “stable ceasefire” between Israel and Gaza. As for France, it called for this before them, and was subjected to criticism from Israel, but Jerusalem did not officially respond to the joint British-German invitation. The Biden administration remains alone in opposing the call for a ceasefire, as expressed by the vote in the Security Council a week and a half ago.

In the assessment of the Israeli source with whom Haaretz spoke, calls for a ceasefire by governments in Europe, and criticisms of Netanyahu in the Senate and Congress in the United States, are being coordinated with the American administration. In his opinion, “Biden is thinking about the same things, but he does not mention them directly, but he is talking to other people, and they are keen to convey his message.”

For the first time since the beginning of the war, voices emerged in the Republican Party calling on Israel to think about the repercussions of the operation in Gaza. Senator Lindsey Graham, considered a major supporter of Israel, said on Monday, in an interview with NBC, that Israel must take into account the repercussions of the war in Gaza on efforts to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia. He continued: “Anyone who wants to weaken Iran in the long term must not allow it to sabotage relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia and other countries cannot advance normalization with Israel, because it will appear to be abandoning the Palestinians.” Graham added, “After the events of October 7, there are two options: to continue the cycle of death, or to use the disaster as an incentive for change. I believe that the Arabs will demand something similar to a two-state solution, and that Israel will demand a buffer zone. I do not know how this will end, but it is clear "If we don't succeed this time, it will take generations before an agreement is reached."