U.S. President Donald Trump’s top diplomat refrained from criticizing Israel over its missile strike on Qatar last week, and said the priority is to make sure Hamas surrenders and disarms to end the war in Gaza.

“We are focused on what happens now, what happens next,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in Jerusalem on Monday, a suggestion the U.S. wants to move on from the diplomatic fallout that arose from the assault. One element is to determine the role that can still be played by Qatar — a U.S. ally and a key mediator between Hamas and Israel — in resolving the conflict, he said.

Rubio was speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who oversaw the unprecedented attack on a Hamas compound in the Qatari capital of Doha on Tuesday. Netanyahu signaled his country would continue targeting members of the Palestinian militant group — which Israel has been fighting for almost two years — wherever they are based.

The Israeli assault on Sept. 9 killed several Hamas members and a Qatari security guard, and caused panic in Doha. The move was widely condemned by Arab and European governments, who said it would further destabilize the Middle East. Trump said he was unhappy with the operation, with the White House adding that it didn’t “advance Israel or America’s goals.”

Trump said he knew about the attack too late to halt the strikes and he has avoided overt criticism of Israel.

Netanyahu said Rubio’s trip proved the strong bond between the U.S. and Israel. On Sunday, the two prayed at the sacred Western Wall in Jerusalem. Rubio also attended mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The two spoke about how to end the war in Gaza, which has raged since Hamas militants attacked Israel in October 2023, and to secure the release of the remaining 48 Israeli hostages, around 20 of whom are thought to be alive.

Those targeted by Israeli jets last week were discussing a U.S. proposal to end the conflict, which has roiled the wider Middle East, devastated much of Gaza and displaced most of the territory’s 2 million people.

Arab governments said Israel’s attack would hurt efforts to reach a ceasefire. Israeli officials argued the operation would increase the pressure on Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and European Union.

The Doha strike came as Israel prepares to deepen an offensive on Gaza City, the territory’s de facto capital and home to hundreds of thousands of people. The U.S. has broadly backed the plan, while many of Israel’s other allies have said it will cause more suffering for Palestinian civilians and should not take place.

“Hamas can surrender tonight, if they want, and lay down their weapons,” Rubio said. “We’ll continue to pursue that route. It’s the ideal outcome. But it may require, ultimately, a concise military operation to eliminate them.”

Many Arab leaders, including Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, are meeting in Qatar on Monday to discuss a response to the Israeli attack. It’s unclear what they can do and most analysts say they have few avenues through which to hurt Israel economically.

Qatar is one of the U.S.’s main allies in the Middle East and is the site of the biggest American military base in the region. The gas-rich country has hosted Hamas officials for over a decade, something the U.S. has endorsed to improve communication with the group.

More than 64,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the war started, according to the Hamas-run health ministry there, and a United Nations body has declared a famine in parts of the territory. Hamas killed 1,200 people with its assault on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

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