A fresh round of Gaza ceasefire talks has begun in the Qatari capital Doha between representatives of Hamas and Israel. A senior Hamas official Abdul Rehman Shadid in a statement expressed hope that the current round of negotiations would lead to tangible progress toward beginning the second phase of ceasefire.

Trump's special envoy said gaining the release of Edan Alexander, believed to be the last living American hostage held by Hamas, was a "top priority."

The Hamas militant group on Thursday renewed a demand for Israeli troops to withdraw from south Gaza, accusing Israel of seeking to breach the terms of a ceasefire in talks on the next phase of the accord.

Hamas is seeking negotiations for the next phase, while Israel wants to extend the first phase. Read more at straitstimes.com.

A senior Hamas official said that a fresh round of Gaza ceasefire talks began on Tuesday in the Qatari capital Doha, with the Palestinian movement approaching the negotiations "positively and responsibly".

The United States has put forward a new proposal that would secure the release of a handful of living hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a month-long extension of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, a source familiar with the negotiations said.