THE plan for post-war Gaza that Israel pitched to United States allies is to run the strip in cooperation with powerful local families.
But there's a problem: in a place where Hamas still wields ruthless influence, none wants to be seen talking to the enemy.
Israel is under pressure from the US to end the loss of human lives and wind down its military offensive after nearly nine months, but does not want Hamas in charge after the war.
Israeli officials have therefore been trying to plot a path ahead for the day after the fighting stops.
A major pillar of the plan, according to public statements from leading Israeli officials, was to shape an alternative civil administration involving local Palestinian actors not part of the existing structures of power and willing to work alongside Israel.
However, the only plausible candidates in Gaza for this role — the heads of powerful local families — are unwilling to get involved, according to Reuters' conversations with five members of major families in Gaza, including the head of one grouping.
Israel has been "actively looking for local tribes and families on the ground to work with them", said Tahani Mustafa, Senior Palestine Analyst at the International Crisis Group, a Brussels-based think tank. "They refused."
They don't want to get involved, in part because they fear retribution from Hamas, said Mustafa, who is in touch with some of the families and other local stakeholders in Gaza.
Asked what the outcome would be for any head of Gaza's powerful families if they cooperate with Israel, Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas-run government media office in Gaza, said: "I expect it to be lethal."
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant discussed post-war plans at a meeting in Washington last week with US officials.
Gallant said: "The only solution for the future of Gaza is governance by local Palestinians. It cannot be Israel and cannot be Hamas."
He did not mention the clans specifically.
Gaza has dozens of powerful families who function as well-organised clans. Many do not have formal links to Hamas.
They derive their power from controlling businesses and command the loyalty of hundreds or thousands of relatives. Each family has a leader, known as a mukhtar.
British colonial rulers of Palestine before the state of Israel was created in 1948 relied heavily on mukhtars to govern.
After Hamas took over Gaza in 2007, it curtailed the power of the families. But they have retained a degree of autonomy.
One of Gaza's clan leaders, who asked not to be named, said Israeli officials had contacted other mukhtars, though not him.
He said the Israeli officials wanted "some respected and influential people" to help with aid deliveries in northern Gaza.
"I expect that mukhtars will not cooperate with these games," he said, citing anger with Israel over its offensive, which has killed clan members and destroyed property.
In another contact, officials from the Israeli Defence Ministry have in the past two weeks contacted two major Gaza business owners in the food sector, according to a Palestinian briefed on the contacts.
A senior member of a different clan said Israeli officials had not contacted his clan, but would be given short shrift if they did.
"We are not collaborators. Israel should stop these games," the clan member, who also has no formal connection to Hamas, said.
Throughout the war, Washington has advocated for reforms to strengthen the Palestinian Authority (PA) and prepare it to govern Gaza, which it used to run.
Israel has yet to develop a concrete post-war plan for governance and security in the enclave, said the officials, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.
Both said Israeli officials were considering a range of ideas, but did not provide details.
While some Gazans blame Hamas for inciting the war, others, angered and radicalised by Israel's offensive, have drawn closer to the group, with its declared commitment to destroying Israel, polls show.
Hamas has recognised it is unlikely to govern after the war, but expects to retain influence.
In April, Hamas said its security services arrested several members of a security apparatus loyal to the Palestinian Authority.
"There is no vacuum in Gaza, Hamas is still the prominent power," said Michael Milshtein, a former colonel in Israeli military intelligence.
The writers are from Reuters