The Biden administration does support Israeli forces going into the southern Gaza city of Rafah as long as their strategy accounts for the significant civilian population that has relocated there.

Leaders from the United States, United Kingdom, and United Nations, among others, have raised concerns about Israel’s intent to go into Rafah, which is now home to roughly 1.3 million Palestinians who evacuated from the northern part of the enclave. But a U.S. administration official clarified on Monday that it supports Israel’s effort to capture or kill senior Hamas leaders who migrated south as long as it doesn’t come at the expense of the civilian population.