Austin's wish list to Israel: No occupation of Gaza, no war deadline

TEL AVIV — US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin brought with him an updated wish list for his meetings in Israel on Monday with the country’s leadership, an Israeli diplomatic source told Al-Monitor. 

The first item was to elicit from Israel a promise that it would not occupy the Gaza Strip in any way, shape or form. Other items included the unrestricted flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, better intelligence to limit harm to civilians and operative plans rather than slogans for the next phase of Israel’s war on Hamas. His final points related to other Israelli fronts, the West Bank and Lebanon — a demand that Israel restrains extremist settlers who attack Palestinians and a promise that it will not launch a surprise attack on Hezbollah.

Responding to Austin’s first demand, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant emphasized after meeting his guest that “Israel will not control Gaza in any civilian way. We will conduct every military operation or effort to secure our future as necessary, and we are building paths for non-hostile partners on the other side.”

Israel not keen on PA control