On Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that Hamas “must be eradicated” and “cannot continue as a military or government force,” fully endorsing Israel’s war objectives in Gaza.

As the first part of a precarious ceasefire between Israel and Hamas comes to an end in two weeks and the second part is still up for negotiation, Rubio met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem to begin a regional tour.

During his first trip to the Middle East as the new top U.S. diplomat, Rubio told Netanyahu, “As long as [Hamas] stands as a force that can govern or as a force that can administer or as a force that can threaten by using violence, peace becomes impossible.”