Updates: Israel's war on Gaza continues

Delegations from Hamas, Israel and the United States are due to convene in Egypt for talks on Monday, with President Donald Trump urging negotiators to "move fast" to end the nearly two-year war in Gaza.

Both Hamas and Israel have responded positively to Trump´s proposal for an end to the fighting and the release of captives in Gaza in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails.

Hamas´s lead negotiator Khalil al-Hayya was to meet with mediators from Egypt and Qatar in Cairo Monday morning, a senior official from the Palestinian militant group told AFP, ahead of talks in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh.

Negotiations will look to "determine the date of a temporary truce", the official said, as well as create conditions for a first phase of the peace plan, in which 47 hostages held in Gaza are to be released in return for hundreds of Palestinian detainees.

Posting on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, the US president praised "positive discussions with Hamas" and allies around the world including Arab and Muslim nations.

"I am told that the first phase should be completed this week, and I am asking everyone to MOVE FAST," Trump wrote.

Foreign ministers from several countries, including Egypt, said the talks were a "real opportunity" to achieve a sustainable ceasefire, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed hope that the hostages could be released within days.

Pope Leo on Sunday voiced optimism over recent developments in Middle East peace negotiations, saying “significant steps forward” have been made toward ending the conflict in Gaza, Anadolu reported.

Speaking during the Angelus prayer at St Peter’s Basilica following the Mass for the Jubilee of Migrants and Missionaries, the pontiff called on all sides to remain committed to peace efforts, implement a ceasefire, and ensure the release of Israeli hostages.

“In the last few hours, amid the dramatic situation in the Middle East, significant steps forward have been made in the peace negotiations, which I hope will soon achieve the desired results,” the pope said.

Pope Leo also expressed sorrow over the continued suffering of civilians, particularly Palestinians in Gaza.

“I continue to be saddened by the immense suffering endured by the Palestinian people in Gaza,” he added.

The pope’s remarks came amid renewed diplomatic activity aimed at implementing a ceasefire and easing the humanitarian crisis in the war-torn enclave.

Despite a call from US President Donald Trump for Israel to pause its Gaza offensive, the Israeli army has continued its bombing campaign.

At least 24 Palestinians were killed by Israeli troops on Sunday, Al Jazeera reported, citing medical sources.

Among the victims were four asylum seekers who were shot near an aid distribution centre north of Rafah, the Nasser Medical Complex said.

Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud, reporting from the town of az-Zuwayda in central Gaza, said attacks were continuing both in the areas where people have been displaced to and in Gaza City, where the majority of Israeli military assaults and the ground offensive have taken place in recent weeks.

Hamas officials arrived in Egypt on Sunday ahead of talks with Israel that the US hopes will lead to a halt in fighting and the freeing of hostages in Gaza, with Washington's top diplomat saying the next days are critical.

Israeli negotiators led by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer were to travel to Egypt on Monday for negotiations in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh about the release of hostages, part of US President Donald Trump's plan to end the nearly two-year Gaza war.

A Hamas delegation, led by the group's exiled Gaza chief, Khalil Al-Hayya, landed in Egypt late Sunday to join representatives of the US and Qatar for talks over the implementation of the most advanced effort yet to halt the conflict.

It was the first visit by Hayya to Egypt since he survived an Israeli strike in Doha, the Qatari capital, last month.