US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on his third trip to Israel since the start of the recent Israel-Hamas conflict. He met leaders from both sides on Thursday.

Blinken sat down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others in his war cabinet in Jerusalem to discuss how to free the remaining hostages. He also urged Israeli leaders to comply with international humanitarian law. He told them they need to take "every possible measure" to avoid harm to civilians, with a plan to protect lives in southern and central Gaza before they resume operations.

Netanyahu pointed to a shooting that occurred in Jerusalem just before their meeting. Members of a group affiliated with Hamas killed three Israelis and wounded at least six others at a bus stop. He said that he and his cabinet have sworn to eradicate Hamas and nothing will stop them.

Blinken also met with the Palestinian Authority's President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah in the West Bank. He told Abbas that officials in the Biden administration are committed to working toward a Palestinian state.

He later held a news conference in Tel Aviv and said the US will continue to discuss practical steps to make real "a just and lasting peace" and what each party needs to do to help achieve it. He added that he has no illusions it is going to be easy.

Blinken also said the US will continue to have conversations with both sides to "work through disagreements" -- because the alternative, which includes more violence and innocent suffering, is "unacceptable."