Hamas and Israel approaching truce agreement, leader says

Hamas is nearing a ‘truce agreement’ with Israel, Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of the group, has said.

Haniyeh told Reuters in a statement that the group was  "close to reaching a truce agreement" with Israel and that its response had been delivered to Qatari officials, who are brokering the indirect negotiations.

On Monday, US President Joe Biden told reporters that he believed Israel and Hamas were close to brokering a deal to release hostages. In exchange for their release, Hamas has demanded a ceasefire for some days, according to multiple media reports.