The Biden Administration's pleas are growing louder for Israel to sharpen its focus on its "day after plan" for Gaza as Israel indicated an end to the intense phase of fighting against Hamas.
In an interview Sunday with Israel's Channel 14, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after the intense phase is finished Israel will be able to deploy more forces along the Northern border with Lebanon.
Discussing 'day-after-plan'
In a news briefing on Monday, State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said Israel is "somewhat" more focused on day after conversations, but didn't delve into the specifics of what those conversations entail.
"It's very much in their interest to engage in these conversations in good faith and we will encourage them to do so," Miller said.
For months now, the Biden Administration has expressed its concerns about Israel's lack of a clear plan for how Gaza will be governed and developed after the war. The administration has also expressed its clear opposition to Israel re-occupying Gaza.
Miller referenced Secretary of State Antony Blinken who has said that absent a plan for security in Gaza after the conflict and absent a political path forward, there will either be Israeli occupation or a state of anarchy where Hamas can reassert control.
"Neither of those are acceptable to us," Miller said. "We don't think either of those are in Israel's interests obviously either, which is why we continue to work on plans for an alternative proposal."
The day-after plan will be a focus of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant's meeting with Blinken at the State Department, Miller said.
"We think it's important Israel put forward its own ideas," he added.