Marco Rubio

The U.S. government's unwavering support for Israel's right to exist, to defend itself, and to ensure the safety of its people.

It's going to take some time to get to that point.

The expectation is, is that this happens quickly.

If you truly want peace and stability and a better future for the Palestinian people, then there has to be a Gaza that is not governed or controlled in any way, shape or form by Hamas or anything that looks like Hamas.

There can be peace in Gaza. There can be Palestinian governance in Gaza, whether you call it statehood or something else, as long as it is not terrorists that are in charge of that territory.

You can't release hostages while there's still bombardments going on.

We need to get these hostages out, and we just need technocrats that are not terrorists to be able to begin the basic reconstruction of Gaza.

The only way you're ever going to have anything that looks like statehood is in a negotiated deal with the Israelis.

If we can get off that road and onto a different road, there are a lot of possibilities long term and in the future, but right now…

Once you agree on the logistics of how this is going to happen – I think the Israelis and everyone acknowledge you can't release hostages in the middle of strikes, so the strikes will have to stop.

The ideal outcome here is, you don't have to carry out any counterterror missions because there are no terrorists in Gaza because Gaza is governed by Palestinian technocrats.

For that to happen, there can't be a war going on in the middle of it, and Hamas has to agree to turn them over and we have to have the right people go in and get them.

What you can't have and what we can't see and what we hope we will not see is that we get into these talks, and these talks are then delayed.

If there are five that are ready to go right now, they should be released right now.

What happens after that? And that is, how do we ensure that we can create a – and help build a Gaza free of terrorism, free of Hamas, free of anything like Hamas?

Hamas has – obviously, look, we're dealing with Hamas, OK? So let's take that with – for what it is.

For the first time in a long time, you see the framework and the output lines of something that could work.

It's going to require a lot of work and a lot of international support, and that's the end goal here of this entire endeavor after you get the hostages out.

We want to get the hostages out as soon as possible. For that to happen, there can't be a war going on in the middle of it.

Reality is, this is a war zone. I mean, this is a place that's suffered a tremendous amount of destruction. That fighting needs to stop.

Beyond that is what happens after that, and that is, how do we ensure that we can create and help build a Gaza free of terrorism, free of Hamas, free of anything like Hamas.

Let's discuss through the mediators the logistics and the mechanics behind how that happens, and that has to happen very quickly. That cannot drag on.

We want it to be as soon as possible.

You're never going to have peace in Gaza as long as there are terrorists operating from that territory threatening the security of Israel.

Well, look, I mean, the ideal outcome here is, you don't have to carry out any counterterror missions because there are no terrorists in Gaza because Gaza is governed by Palestinian technocrats.