The Hamas terrorist organization said on Wednesday night that it has sent new "ideas" to Qatari mediators aimed at ending the war in Gaza.
The group said that its leader, Ismail Haniyeh, held talks with the Qatari and Egyptian mediators on the issue.
The group further said that Haniyeh also communicated with Turkish officials about the latest developments and that Hamas is viewing the ongoing talks in a "positive spirit."
"We exchanged some ideas with the mediator brothers with the aim of stopping the aggression against our Palestinian people," said the Hamas statement quoted by AFP.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Prime Minister's Office, on behalf of the Mossad, announced that the mediators have conveyed to the negotiating team Hamas' remarks on the outline of the hostage deal.
"Israel is evaluating the remarks and will convey its reply to the mediators," the statement said.
A senior defense official said that "Hamas continues to insist on a clause in the deal that would prevent Israel from returning to fight after the first stage of the deal, which is not acceptable to Israel."
The official added that "there are additional differences which were not yet bridged," and emphasized that "Israel will continue negotiations while continuing the military and diplomatic pressure to bring to the release of all 120 hostages, living and dead as one."
US President Joe Biden two months ago outlined a three-phase process for a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
The first phase of Biden’s three-phase process, which he outlined in a speech last month, would last for six weeks and would include a full and complete ceasefire, withdrawal of Israeli forces from all populated areas of Gaza, and the release of a number of hostages, including women, the elderly, and the wounded, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian Arab prisoners.
Phase two would see the release of all remaining living hostages, while phase three would encompass "a major reconstruction plan for Gaza," as well as the repatriation of the remains of deceased hostages to their families.
Hamas later gave its official response to Biden’s proposal, with a senior Israeli official saying the terrorist organization rejected Biden’s proposal.
The terrorist organization later claimed that it was Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who was opposed to Biden’s proposal, citing comments made by Netanyahu in an interview with Channel 14, in which he said that he is prepared to advance such a deal, but not at the cost of stopping the war.