The developments in the seven-month-old war came as Israeli forces struck Rafah on Gaza’s southern edge from the air and ground and ordered residents to leave parts of the city, which has been a refuge for more than a million displaced Palestinians.
Hamas said in a brief statement that its chief, Ismail Haniyeh, had informed Qatari and Egyptian mediators that the group accepted their proposal for a ceasefire.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said later that the truce proposal fell short of Israel's demands but Israel would send a delegation to meet with negotiators to try to reach an agreement.
Qatar’s foreign ministry said its delegation will head to Cairo on Tuesday to resume indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
In a statement, Netanyahu’s office added that his war cabinet approved continuing an operation in Rafah.
Earlier, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said that the group had accepted a Gaza ceasefire proposal put forward by Qatari and Egyptian mediators.
Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya confirmed to Al Jazeera that there are three phases to the ceasefire deal, but added that mediators had told Hamas that the United States president was committed to ensuring the implementation of the agreement.
There has been no confirmation of this from the American side.
Al-Hayya added that the first phase would see the return of displaced Palestinians in Gaza to their homes, and the flow of aid, fuel and relief materials into Gaza.
He added that 50 Palestinian prisoners would be released for each female captive held by Hamas in that first phase. In the second phase, Hamas would release male captives for an undetermined number of Palestinian prisoners.
The third phase of the agreement would include the start of the implementation of a reconstruction plan for a period of three to five years.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has welcomed the announcement by Hamas that it has accepted a proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, adding he hopes Israel would do the same.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting, Erdogan called on Western countries to increase pressure on Israel’s leadership to accept the deal.
“We welcome the statement by Hamas that they accepted the ceasefire with our suggestion. Now, Israel must take the same step,” he said.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller says Washington will “withhold judgement” on Hamas’s response to the ceasefire proposal until it has time to fully review it.
“I can confirm that Hamas has issued a response. We are reviewing that response now and discussing it with our partners in the region,” he said.
Miller declined to say whether Hamas agreed to a US-approved offer or to a different version of the proposal.
“As you know, [CIA] Director Burns is in the region working on this in real time. We will be discussing this response with our partners over the coming hours,” he continued.
