US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Tuesday that the United States and other countries are considering a “variety of potential alternatives” for the future of the Gaza Strip if Hamas is isolated from its rule.

Blinken added during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing that the status quo in which Hamas is in charge of the densely populated Strip cannot continue, but Israel does not want to run Gaza either.

Blinken explained that between these two situations there are “a variety of potential alternatives that we are now carefully examining, as are other countries.”

He added that what would be most logical at some point is the presence of an “effective and renewed Palestinian authority” to govern Gaza, but the question is whether this is possible.

"If we cannot do that, there are other temporary arrangements that may include a number of other countries in the region. They may include international agencies that help provide security and governance," Blinken said.

Israel responded to the attack launched by Hamas on October 7, which led to the death of more than 1,400 people, by bombarding the Gaza Strip with air strikes, vowing to eliminate Hamas in a relentless attack, but it does not seem to have a clear way to end the matter.

The Hamas Ministry of Health announced that the death toll as a result of the Israeli bombing in the Gaza Strip had risen to 8,500, nearly half of whom were children.

UN and other aid officials said civilians in the besieged Palestinian enclave were facing a health catastrophe, with hospitals struggling to treat the injured and a shortage of electricity supplies.

'Unclear plan'

Washington is talking with Israel, as well as with other countries in the region, about how to govern the Palestinian Strip if Israel wins on the battlefield, but a clear plan has not yet emerged.

Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that among the options being considered by the United States and Israel are the deployment of a multinational force that may include American forces, or placing Gaza under United Nations supervision temporarily.

In response to the report, the White House said that sending American forces to Gaza as part of a peacekeeping force is not a matter under study or discussion.

Some aides to US President Joe Biden are concerned that although Israel may develop an effective plan to permanently damage Hamas, it has not yet developed an exit strategy.

“We had very preliminary conversations about what the future of Gaza might look like,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a press conference, adding: “I expect this will be the subject of a lot of diplomatic work going forward.”

He continued: “The possibility of achieving this goal in one step is an open question, and if this is impossible to achieve now, there are temporary arrangements that may include other countries in the region or international agencies that can provide security and governance in the sector. The ultimate goal in the long term remains achieving the two-state solution.” .

"stained hands"

Blinken was forced to stop his speech during the interrogation session in Congress, after protesters chanted to demand “save the children of Gaza” and “ceasefire now.”

The protesters waved their hands stained red, indicating blood, and calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Earlier Tuesday, the Israeli National Security Advisor, Tzachi Hanegbi, announced the launch of what he described as the “third phase” of the Gaza war, which is the ground operation in the northern Gaza Strip, noting that the first phase included containing the Hamas attack and securing the south. Israel. The second stage, as he put it, consists of “striking all enemy systems with force and precision, from land, sea and air, through intelligence information.”