Israel needs a clear and concrete plan for the future of Gaza as the power vacuum will cause chaos, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Wednesday.

“We do not and will not support an Israeli occupation. We also, of course, do not support Hamas rule in Gaza… We have seen where this has led too many times for the people of Gaza and for Israel. There also cannot be anarchy and a vacuum that is likely to be filled by chaos,” Blinken said during a press conference in Kiev.

The statements provoked the Israeli reaction, with the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to say that post-war planning was impossible without first completing the elimination of Hamas.

With his statement, Netanyahu appeared to hit back at the criticism, but did not directly refer to Blinken.

Israel, he said, sought out Palestinians not aligned with Hamas to take over the local administration of Gaza, who were then dissuaded by threats of retaliation by Hamas.

“All talk of ‘the day after’, while Hamas remains intact, will remain mere words without content”, Netanyahu said. “Contrary to what has been claimed, for months we have been making various efforts to solve this complex problem. Some of the efforts are not being publicized, and it is good that it is.”

Citing widespread Palestinian support for the Oct. 7 attack, Netanyahu said, in an apparent reference to the Palestinian Authority: “We will not allow them to create a terrorist state from which they can attack us.”

Washington and Israel agree that Hamas cannot continue to rule Gaza.
But the allies disagree over Israel’s insistence on “total victory” over Hamas, including the southern city of Rafah, where the United States has warned that a broad offensive could endanger displaced Palestinians.