A senior Israeli official has said that Israel may govern besieged Gaza "for some time" following the carnage, and firmly rejected the idea of returning the Palestinian Authority (PA) to power in the enclave.
"There must be an administrative system in Gaza to run daily life. We may stay there for some time," the unnamed official told Israel’s Walla news portal.
The official is part of the delegation accompanying Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on his current visit to the United States.
"If we're not there in the first phase, we cannot be sure we can transfer power to another party," he said, without naming a specific group.
While the official said the governing system would eventually be run by Palestinians, he stressed that "the Palestinian Authority will not run the strip."
Israeli media have reported that Tel Aviv is considering a joint Arab and international administration to manage post-war Gaza, as part of plans to prevent the return of Hamas or the PA.
"The main condition for ending the war is Hamas’ absence from Gaza. Gaza must be disarmed and its leaders exiled," the official said, adding that "another force will take control of the area and prevent the use of weapons."
Israel says its ongoing military aggression aims to dismantle Hamas’ military structure and remove it from power.
Israel’s genocide in Gaza
Israel has been carrying out a genocide in Gaza since October 2023.
Palestinians have recorded killings of more than 57,500 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
Some 11,000 Palestinians are feared buried under rubble of annihilated homes, according to Palestine's official WAFA news agency.
Experts, however, contend that the actual death toll significantly exceeds what the Gaza authorities have reported, estimating it could be around 200,000.
Washington allocates $3.8 billion in annual military funding to its long-standing ally Israel.
Since October 2023, the US has spent more than $22 billion supporting Israel's genocide in Gaza and wars in neighbouring countries.
Despite senior US officials criticising Israel regarding the high civilian death toll in Gaza, Washington has, thus far, resisted calls to place conditions on any arms transfers.
In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Separately, Israel is facing a genocide case brought by South Africa at the International Court of Justice over its military campaign in the enclave.
