The White House said Thursday it was considering a pause in the conflict between Israel and Hamas to provide aid to Gaza civilians.
According to National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby, any such temporary pause would not prevent Israel from defending itself.
“We are trying to explore the idea of taking as many pauses as necessary to continue delivering aid and continue working to get people out safely, including hostages,” he told reporters during a briefing.
UN experts called on Thursday for a humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Israel has stressed that its attacks are aimed at Hamas, not civilians, and accuses the group of using civilians as human shields.
“We are doing everything we can to work with our Israeli counterparts to try to minimize the risk of civilian deaths and collateral damage,” Kirby said.