CIA and MI6 say agencies are 'working tirelessly' towards ceasefire

The heads of American and British foreign intelligence agencies say they are "working tirelessly" towards a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza.

In an opinion piece for the Financial Times, CIA director Bill Burns and MI6 chief Richard Moore said that their agencies had "exploited our intelligence channels to push hard for restraint and de-escalation".

They added that a ceasefire in Gaza “could end the suffering and appalling loss of life of Palestinian civilians and bring home the hostages after 11 months of hellish confinement”.

Despite US President Joe Biden's claims that truce talks have been progressing positively, a Turkish foreign ministry spokesperson said on 3 September that Washington wasn't exerting any real pressure on Israel and that the US has told Hamas that that "they would continue the current talks for two more weeks and then end them if there is no resolution".

In addition, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been making new demands during each round of ceasefire talks.

The negotiations currently focus on the status of the Philadelphi Corridor, a buffer zone along the Gaza Strip's border with Egypt, as well as the Rafah border crossing and the exchange of Israeli captives for Palestinian prisoners.

Hamas has ruled out allowing an Israeli presence in the buffer zone, while Netanyahu “refuses to leave the Philadelphi Corridor and has imposed new conditions on the Rafah border crossing”, the spokesperson said.