New York, New York - Incoming President Donald Trump would not explicitly rule out giving Israel the green light to annex the illegally occupied West Bank.

In an interview with Time Magazine released Thursday after Trump was named the publication's Person of the Year, the president-elect was asked up front if he would allow Israel to seize the Palestinian territory.

"I'm not saying that's a very likely scenario, but I want a long-lasting peace, a peace where we don't have an October 7 in another three years. And there are numerous ways you can do it," Trump said as part of a long and rambling answer.

He also avoided backing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying "there are other alternatives."

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On whether he would stop Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – currently wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes in Gaza – from annexing the West Bank, Trump offered only "We'll see what happens," before again pivoting to October 7.

The International Court of Justice, as well as the vast majority of the world's countries, consider Israel's 57-year occupation of the Palestinian territories illegal.

But Trump's nomination for ambassador to Israel, ex-Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, is an enthusiastic supporter of Israeli settlements and annexation plans, once saying "there's no such thing as a Palestinian."

Trump himself greatly boosted Israel's extreme agenda in his first term as president, officially recognizing Jerusalem as its capital, as well as Israeli sovereignty over the illegally occupied Golan Heights.

Israel is facing widespread accusations of genocide and crimes against humanity for its year-long destruction of Gaza, where it has killed at least 44,800 people, mostly women and children. The true death toll is feared to be much higher.