UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said he thinks the Gaza Strip should not become a United Nations protectorate after the end of the war.

“I do not think that a UN protectorate in Gaza is a solution,” Mr Guterres said at a press conference on Monday, according to a UN statement.

Mr Guterres, instead, called for a transitional phase involving the U.S. and Arab states.

“Everybody needs to come together to make the conditions for a transition, allowing for a strengthened Palestinian Authority to assume responsibility in Gaza.

“Based on that, to finally move in a determined and irreversible way to a two-state solution based on the principles that have been largely established by the international community and which I have time and time again outlined.”

A two-state solution envisages an independent Palestinian state coexisting with Israel.

“I think we need a multi-stakeholder approach in which different countries and different entities will cooperate,” he said.

“For Israel, of course, the U.S. is the main guarantor of its security.

”For Palestinians, the neighbouring and Arab countries of the region are essential,” explained the UN secretary-general.

(dpa/NAN)