Talks are resuming in Doha on a deal for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages, as key mediator Qatar says an agreement is "very close".

Our Gaza correspondent Rushdi Abualouf says there would be three phases to the deal, with three hostages released on the first day and Israel beginning to withdraw troops after that.

Envoys for both Biden and President-elect Donald Trump have claimed credit for the progress of the talks, but Trump's looming inauguration has brought the pressure of a meaningful deadline, Tom Bateman writes.

But as our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams notes, Qatari mediators say both sides could "still get lost in the details" and a deal could fall through.

The war was triggered by Hamas's attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others taken to Gaza as hostages.

Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza in response, and the enclave's Hamas-run health ministry says more than 46,500 people have been killed there during the war.

Source: BBC

BDST: 1807 HRS, JAN 14, 2025
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