Gaza [Palestine], March 30: Hamas has agreed to a Gaza ceasefire proposal it received two days ago from mediators Egypt and Qatar, the Palestinian militant group's chief said on Saturday.
"Two days ago, we received a proposal from the mediators in Egypt and Qatar. We dealt with it positively and accepted it," Khalil al-Hayya said in a televised speech.
"We hope that the (Israeli) occupation will not undermine (it)," said Hayya, who leads the Hamas negotiating team in indirect talks aimed at securing a ceasefire in the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza that erupted in October 2023.
Security sources told Reuters on Thursday that Egypt had received positive indications from Israel over a new ceasefire proposal that would include a transitional phase.
The proposal suggests Hamas release five of the Israeli hostages it is holding each week, the sources said.
The Israeli prime minister's office said it had held a series of consultations according to the proposal that was received from the mediators, and that Israel had conveyed to the mediators a counter-proposal in full coordination with the United States.
Reuters asked the prime minister's office if it had also agreed to the ceasefire proposal but it did not immediately respond.
More than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli offensive in Gaza, Palestinian officials say.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
