The United States remains opposed to Israel’s large-scale military operation in Rafah in the absence of measures to protect civilians in the Palestinian town on the border with Egypt, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Monday, AFP reported.

“Without a credible plan for that, which they (Israel) are able to implement, we do not support a large-scale military operation” in Rafah, he told reporters.

Washington does not consider the Israeli military operation that freed two hostages held in Rafah on Monday and killed about 100 people in explosions, according to the Hamas health ministry, to be a large-scale offensive, the spokesman added.

A deal between Israel and Hamas that would allow the release of hostages in Gaza in exchange for a ceasefire remains “possible,” Miller also noted.

“We believe that the benefits of a pause and deal on the hostages would be enormous, first of all, obviously, for the hostages who would be released, but also for the humanitarian operation in Gaza, and for our ability to start looking for a real, viable and sustainable solution of this conflict,” he said.

The “heartbreaking” death of Hind Rajab, a 6-year-old girl

A US State Department spokesman finally called on Israel to “urgently” investigate the “heartbreaking” death of Hind Rajab, a 6-year-old girl who was found dead in Gaza City on Saturday after hours of pleas for help. According to her family and Hamas, she was killed by Israeli forces.

“We have called on the Israeli authorities to urgently investigate this incident,” said Matthew Miller. “It’s a heartbreaking, heartbreaking story for this child, and of course there have been thousands of other children who have died as a result of this conflict.”

The girl’s disappearance nearly two weeks ago and her emotional calls recorded by emergency services in the hours she survived in a car during an Israeli operation have been widely shared on social media.

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