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U.S. President Donald Trump said a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas may be reached next week, following what he described as a "positive" response from the Palestinian resistance group to a U.S. proposal.
"There could be a deal on a Gaza cease-fire by next week," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding that he had not yet been briefed on the status of the negotiations, according to Arab News.
Hamas said it "has submitted its positive response" to Egyptian and Qatari mediators and was "fully prepared to immediately enter into a round of negotiations regarding the mechanism for implementing this framework."
The Palestinian group completed internal consultations with Palestinian factions and forces regarding the mediators' latest proposal to halt the aggression against Palestinians in Gaza.
"We have completed our internal consultations with Palestinian factions and forces regarding the mediators' latest proposal to halt the aggression against our people in Gaza," Hamas said in a statement.
A Hamas official said the group seeks guarantees for a full withdrawal of Israeli forces and a lasting truce.
Israeli and American media reported that the main provisions include Hamas releasing half of the living Israeli hostages, 10, in addition to the bodies of 18 prisoners in five phases during a 60-day ceasefire.
Israel would, in return, release a large number of Palestinian prisoners it holds and gradually withdraw forces from agreed-upon areas inside Gaza.
Trump reportedly promised that a 60-day ceasefire could be extended if needed.
Tel Aviv estimates that there are 50 Israeli hostages in Gaza, including 20 alive, while over 10,400 Palestinians are being held in its prisons, suffering torture, starvation, and medical neglect that have led to the deaths of many, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights and media reports.
Israeli Channel 12 quoted an unnamed Israeli source who said, "If Hamas agrees to the proposal, it is expected that an Israeli delegation will travel to Doha to finalize the deal."
The source added, "This will not take more than a day and a half."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to travel to Washington to meet Trump, according to reports. The withdrawal point could cause division in Tel Aviv, which demands the disarmament of the Palestinian group and the exile of its leadership abroad.
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The cease-fire push came amid continued violence in Gaza. At least 20 Palestinians were killed Friday while attempting to access aid, according to officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
The U.N. said 613 Palestinians have been killed in the last month while seeking food. Israeli airstrikes on Gaza's Muwasi area killed 15 people, including eight women and a child, according to local hospitals.
Israel's military said it was reviewing the incidents.
The current war gained a whole new level after Oct. 7, 2023. Gaza health officials said more than 57,000 Palestinians have since been killed, with most of them being civilians and kids.
Despite international calls for a ceasefire, Israel has pursued a genocidal war on Gaza, killing over 57,200 Palestinians, most of them women and children, since late 2023.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the ICC for its war on the enclave.
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