Hamas says ready to start Gaza ceasefire talks 'immediately' - War on Gaza
The announcement came after it held consultations with other Palestinian factions and before a visit on Monday by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington, where President Donald Trump is pushing for an end to the war, now in its 21st month.
"The movement is ready to engage immediately and seriously in a cycle of negotiations on the mechanism to put in place" the terms of a draft US-backed truce proposal received from mediators, the militant group said in a statement.
Hamas ally Islamic Jihad said it supported ceasefire talks, but demanded "guarantees" that Israel "will not resume its aggression" once captives held in Gaza are freed.
US President said late Friday there "could be a Gaza deal" next week and that he was optimistic, although the situation could change.
Asked aboard Air Force One how optimistic he was about a ceasefire deal, Trump said "very," but added "it changes day to day".
In response to reports that Hamas had responded positively to proposed truce talks, he said: "That's good. They haven't briefed me on it. We have to get it over with. We have to do something about Gaza."
The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, and has killed at least 57,268 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.
Two previous ceasefires brokered by Qatar, Egypt, and the United States have seen temporary halts in fighting, coupled with the return of Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Netanyahu earlier on Friday vowed to bring home all the hostages held in Gaza, after coming under massive domestic pressure over their fate.
"I feel a deep commitment, first and foremost, to ensure the return of all our abductees, all of them," he said.
Trump said on Thursday he wanted "safety for the people of Gaza".
"They've gone through hell," he said.
60-day truce proposal
A Palestinian source familiar with the negotiations told AFP earlier this week that the latest proposals included "a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release half of the living Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip" -- thought to number 22 -- "in exchange for Israel releasing several Palestinian prisoners and detainees".
Out of 251 hostages seized by Palestinian militants during the October 2023 attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27, the Israeli military says, are dead.
Nearly 21 months of war have created dire humanitarian conditions for the more than two million people in the Gaza Strip, where Israel has recently expanded its military operations.
The military said in a statement it had been striking suspected Hamas targets across the territory, including around Gaza City in the north and Khan Yunis and Rafah in the south.
Civil defence says aid-seekers killed
Gaza civil defence official Mohammad al-Mughayyir said Israeli strikes and gunfire killed at least 52 people on Friday.
The Israeli military said it was looking into reports, except for a handful of incidents for which it requested coordinates and timeframes.
Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency.
In a separate statement, the Israeli military said a 19-year-old sergeant "fell during combat in the southern Gaza Strip".
Mughayyir said the Palestinians killed included five shot while waiting for aid near a US-run site near Rafah in southern Gaza and several who were waiting for aid near the Wadi Gaza Bridge in the centre of the territory.
They were the latest in a spate of deaths near aid distribution centres in the devastated territory, which UN agencies have warned is on the brink of famine.
The US- and Israeli-run Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has distanced itself from reports of deadly incidents near its sites.
Displaced civilians
Mughayyir told AFP that eight people, including a child, were killed in an Israeli air strike on the tents of displaced civilians near Khan Yunis on Thursday.
The civil defence official said eight more people were killed in two other strikes on camps on the coast, including one that killed two children early Friday.
The Israeli military said it was operating throughout Gaza "to dismantle Hamas military capabilities".
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Polls have repeatedly shown that a majority of the country wants a deal to bring the hostages home, even if it means an end to the war. Palestinian children check the rubble of a residential house in Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on July 1, 2025, following overnight Israeli strikes. Eyad Baba/AFP/Getty Images What are Israel's demands? In addition to the aim of bringing the hostages home, Netanyahu has not wavered from his more maximalist aims: disarmament of Gaza and the destruction of Hamas' military capabilities and governance abilities. But last weekend, the prime minister made a rhetorical shift in laying out Israel's goals – for the first time prioritizing the return of hostages ahead of what he once called the 'supreme objective' of defeating Hamas. Netanyahu said 'many opportunities have opened up' following Israel's military operations in Iran, including the possibility of bringing home everyone still held captive by Hamas. 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Hamas announced on Friday that it 'submitted a positive response to the mediators, and the movement is fully prepared to immediately enter into a round of negotiations regarding the mechanism for implementing this framework.' The militant group has three main demands: a permanent end to the fighting, for humanitarian assistance to be carried out by the United Nations, and for Israel to retreat to the positions it held on March 2 this year, before it renewed its offensive and occupied the northern part of the Strip. A senior Hamas official told CNN in late May that the group is 'ready to return the hostages in one day – just we want a guarantee that war will not come again after that.' The hostages are Hamas' key leverage in negotiations, and the militant group has refused to agree to a release without a path to end the conflict. In response to the earlier Trump administration-backed ceasefire proposal in May, Hamas requested US assurances that permanent ceasefire negotiations will continue and that fighting will not resume after the 60-day pause. Whether the ceasefire will be temporary or a pathway to a permanent truce is the biggest sticking point between the warring parties. While Israel wants to eradicate Hamas following the Oct. 7 attacks, the group has shown little willingness to relinquish its political and military power in Gaza. Officials in the group have given contradictory statements as to Hamas' role in a post-war Gaza. The group's spokesperson, Hazem Qassem, has said that the group is not 'clinging to power' and does not have to be part of arrangements 'in the next phase.' What's in the proposed deal? While the fine detail of the proposal is yet to be released it is clear that the revised plan is an attempt to bridge some of the differences between Israel and Hamas. A source familiar with the negotiations said that the timeline of the latest proposal calls for the release of 10 living Israeli hostages and 18 deceased hostages spread out over the full 60-day period. Of the 50 hostages still in Gaza, at least 20 of them are believed to be alive, according to the Israeli government. Similiar to previous ceasefires, on the first day of the truce, Hamas would release eight living hostages. In exchange, Israel would release an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, and withdraw its forces from pre-agreed locations in northern Gaza. Israel and Hamas would also immediately enter into negotiations for a permanent ceasefire once the initial truce goes into effect, the source said. Under the deal, hostages will be released without ceremonies or fanfare at Israel's request – unlike during the last truce, when Hamas staged public propaganda events around hostage transfers that sparked outrage in Israel. 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One of the key issues to resolve during proximity talks will be the timeline and location of the withdrawal of Israeli forces in Gaza during the 60-day ceasefire, according to the source. When were the previous ceasefires? In the 21 months of war between Israel and Hamas, ceasefires have been in place for a total of only nine weeks. More than 57,000 people, of which more than 17,000 are children, have been killed in Gaza during the fighting, according to the Palestinian health ministry. Palestinian children line up to receive a meal at a food distribution point in Nuseirat on June 30, 2025. Eyad Baba/AFP/Getty Images The first ceasefire came into effect in November 2023, but lasted only a week. In that time, 105 hostages were released from Gaza, in exchange for scores of Palestinian prisoners. A second ceasefire was not struck until January 2025, shortly before Trump's return to the White House. 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