Hamas is seeking guarantees that a new US-backed ceasefire proposal for Gaza would lead to the war's end, a source close to the militant group said on Thursday, as medics said Israeli strikes across the territory had killed scores more people, Reuters reports.
Nearly 21 months since the Israeli strikes began, efforts for a Gaza truce gathered momentum after the US secured a ceasefire to end a 12-day aerial conflict between Israel and Iran.
But on the ground in Gaza, intensified Israeli strikes continue unabated, killing at least 59 people on Thursday, according to health authorities in the territory.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said that Israel had accepted the conditions needed to finalise a 60-day ceasefire with Hamas, during which the parties will work to end the war.
Hamas is seeking clear guarantees that the ceasefire will eventually lead to the war's end, a source close to the group said.
Two Israeli officials said those details were still being worked out.
In a statement early on Friday, Hamas said it was discussing the ceasefire proposal with other Palestinian factions and would submit its response to mediators once those talks conclude.
Egyptian and Qatari mediators have been working to secure US and international guarantees that talks on ending the war would continue as a way of convincing Hamas to accept a two-month truce proposal, Egyptian security sources said.
The proposal includes the staggered release of 10 living Israeli hostages and the return of the bodies of 18 more in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, an official familiar with the negotiations said on Thursday.
Of the 50 remaining hostages in Gaza, 20 are believed to still be alive.
Aid would enter Gaza immediately, and the Israeli military would carry out a phased withdrawal from parts of the enclave, according to the proposal. Negotiations would immediately start on a permanent ceasefire.
"We sure hope it's a done deal, but I think it's all going to be what Hamas is willing to accept," U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Israel's Channel 12 on Thursday. "One thing is clear: The president wants it to be over. The prime minister wants it to be over. The American people, the Israeli people, want it to be over."
Huckabee added that he would be taking part in talks next week at the White House when Netanyahu is due to meet with Trump.
Israel says it won't end the war while Hamas is still armed and ruling Gaza. Hamas, severely weakened, says it won't lay down its weapons but is willing to release all the hostages still in Gaza if Israel ends the war.
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