WASHINGTON, Nov. 30 (Sputnik) - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that during his visit to Israel he discussed details of Tel-Aviv's military operations and underscored that massive civilian casualties that took place in northern Gaza must not repeat in the south of the enclave.

Blinken's remarks came during his third visit to the region since hostilities first hit a renewed boiling point following the October 7 surprise attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

The American diplomat told reporters during a Thursday conference that US officials had renewed calls for Israel to comply with international laws and take steps to ensure that civilians in the Gaza Strip are not enveloped in the conflict.

"We discussed the details of Israel's ongoing planning, and I underscored the imperative the United States, that the massive loss of civilian life and displacement of the scale that we saw in northern Gaza, not be repeated in the South," Blinken said.

"In my meetings today with the Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] and senior Israeli officials, I made clear that before Israel resumes major military operations, it must put in place humanitarian civilian protection plans that minimize further casualties of innocent Palestinians."

Weighing in on reports of rising extremist settler violence, Blinken further relayed to journalists that the US does in fact expect Israeli officials to take appropriate steps to quell the developments.

"I raised our deep concerns about steps that could escalate tensions in the West Bank, including extremist settler violence and proposals from parts of the Israeli coalition government to further expand settlement," Blinken said.

Photo from AFP