White House to offer Israel alternatives to Gaza ground offensive

On Friday, the White House announced that it will present Israeli officials with different strategies for dismantling Hamas in Gaza, aiming to avoid a ground assault in Rafah, which Washington has said would be a "disaster".

"There's a million-and-a-half people there," White House spokesperson John Kirby told a regular news briefing. "We believe a major ground offensive is a mistake" and would be a "disaster."

Kirby added that US officials plan to discuss potential strategies with Israeli representatives during their visit to Washington, and said that further information about the visit would be made available in the near future.