Hamas says it submitted response to Gaza ceasefire proposal to mediators

Hamas said early Thursday that it submitted its response to a Gaza ceasefire proposal.

"A short while ago, Hamas delivered to the mediators its response and the response of the Palestinian factions to the ceasefire proposal," the group said in a statement.

Further details regarding the response were not immediately available.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the negotiation team received the Hamas response from mediators and was reviewing it.

Israel's public broadcaster KAN, citing sources familiar with the matter, said that the latest response is "more positive" than the previous ones.

Indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas over the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner release deal continue in Doha, Qatar.

Hamas has repeatedly affirmed its willingness to release all Israeli captives in one batch in exchange for ending Israel's war and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

Israel has killed more than 59,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in the Gaza Strip since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, collapsed the health system, and led to severe food shortages.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.