USA, Israel Discuss Three Options Regarding Gaza Strip's Future

Which one did Tel Aviv choose?

The US and Israel have discussed three options for the future of the Gaza Strip. They include control of the Gaza Strip by Middle Eastern countries with the support of US, British, German and French troops, management of the enclave under UN auspices and deployment of peacekeepers there. Israel considered the last option worthy, RBC writes.

Washington and Tel Aviv are considering three options for the future of the Gaza Strip in case the Israeli military manages to oust Hamas militants from there, Bloomberg reports citing sources. The discussions are taking place against the backdrop of the expansion of IDF ground manoeuvres in the territory controlled by the Palestinian movement.

The first involves granting temporary control over the enclave to Middle Eastern countries, with the US, UK, French and German troops stationed in the Gaza Strip. The presence of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates is also desirable.

In the second option, a peacekeeping force would operate in the Strip - similar to the Multinational Force and Observers in the Sinai Peninsula, the mission that monitors the implementation of the 1979 Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty (Camp David Accords). According to the sources, Israel believes that "this idea is worthy of consideration."

Another option is the temporary administration of the Gaza Strip under the auspices of the United Nations (earlier the agency wrote that the parties are considering the establishment of an interim government there with the support of the UN and the participation of Arab countries). Israel considers this proposal impractical, as the UN is "of little use".

All three options, the agency notes, pose a "political danger" to President Joe Biden and other countries, including Gulf states. According to the source, Biden would not want to expose to risk even a small contingent of U.S. troops. It is also unknown whether Arab states are interested in participating in the fate of the Gaza Strip.

"The most sensible thing would be for an effective and renewed Palestinian National Authority to take responsibility for the governance and ultimately security of the Gaza Strip," Blinken said (quoted by The Times of Israel).

He rejected options under which Israel or Hamas would control the Gaza Strip.