Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo

Hopes of a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza war have been raised after a Hamas delegation reportedly arrived in Cairo, Egypt.

The US says the six day pause – which would see the release of more Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners – has “more or less” been accepted by Israel.

Egyptian officials, who have been running talks with Qatar, said delegations from both Hamas and Israel were expected to attend the negotiations.

Hamas is reported to have said an agreement on a truce could be reached within the next 24 to 48 hours if Israel accepts the militant group’s demand.

Pressure for a deal has intensified after an incident on Thursday which saw at least 112 people killed outside Gaza City.

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Hamas has accused Israel of shooting at civilians as they rushed to get food from an aid convoy. Israel has denied the claim and on Sunday, said an initial review had concluded that troops had shot against “several individuals” who approached them, but that most of the deaths were caused by the crush of people.

Expectations of a ceasefire have been raised after a senior US official told several news outlets that Israel is close to accepting a deal.

The source said there is a “framework deal” and Israel has “more or less accepted” a ceasefire to allow for the release of Hamas-held hostages in Gaza and to allow aid into the territory.

However, the official said Hamas had not yet agreed to a “defined category of vulnerable hostages” – something which could prove to be a sticking point to an agreement.

Israel has reportedly said that ceasefire talks would not continue until Hamas presents a list of the hostages, including who is alive and who is dead.

President Joe Biden revealed on Friday that the US will begin air-dropping humanitarian assistance into Gaza.

Mr Biden – who made the announcement just a day after Thursay’s incident – said the airdrops will begin in the “coming days”.

“We need to do more and the United States will do more,” Biden told reporters, adding that “aid flowing to Gaza is nowhere nearly enough.”

At the White House, spokesperson John Kirby stressed that airdrops would become “a sustained effort.” He added that the first airdrop would be likely be military MREs, or “meals ready-to-eat.”

“This isn’t going to be one and done,” Kirby said.

Biden also said the US was also looking at the possibility of a maritime corridor to deliver large amounts of aid into Gaza.

The Israeli military launched a large-scale air and ground campaign to destroy Hamas after its gunmen killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel on 7 October and took 253 back to Gaza as hostages.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says at least 30,410 people, including 21,000 children and women, have been killed since then with some 7,000 missing and 71,700 injured.