Despite four previous wars with Gaza’s Hamas rulers — in 2008, 2012, 2014 and 2021 — Israel has never before threatened to completely overthrow the movement which rules this tiny territory of 2.4 million people. Israel wants to “hand over the keys” to a third party, a foreign ministry source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. But Washington has also not been clear about how it sees Gaza’s future. One option supported by Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid is for Mahmud Abbas’ Palestinian Authority to take control. “Moreover, it is not clear that Israel would want the West Bank and Gaza under a single authority,” the think tank said.

Source: The Hindu October 23, 2023 19:23 UTC