US president-elect Donald Trump has suggested Israel and Hamas could agree a Gaza ceasefire by the end of the week.

Talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives have resumed in the Qatari capital Doha today, after US President Joe Biden indicated a deal to stop the fighting was "on the brink" yesterday.

A draft agreement has been sent to both sides. It includes provisions for the release of hostages and a phased Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.

Qatar says Israel and Hamas are at their "closest point" yet to a ceasefire deal.

Two Hamas officials said the group has accepted the draft agreement, with Israel still considering the deal.

An Israeli official said a deal is close but "we are not there" yet.

More than 46,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its ground offensive in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

Biden hails possibility of agreement

President Biden said it would include a hostage release deal and a "surge" of aid to Palestinians, in his final foreign policy speech as president.

"So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace," he said.

"The deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started."

Qatari mediators have sent Israel and Hamas a draft proposal for an agreement to halt the fighting.

Analysis:
Deal might be close, but there are many unanswered questions

Trump: 'We're very close'

President-elect Donald Trump has also discussed a possible peace deal during a phone interview with the Newsmax channel.

"We're very close to getting it done and they have to get it done," he said.

"If they don't get it done, there's going to be a lot of trouble out there, a lot of trouble, like they have never seen before.

"And they will get it done. And I understand there's been a handshake and they're getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week. But it has to take place, it has to take place."

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Israeli official: Former Hamas leader held up deal

Speaking on Tuesday as negotiations resumed in Qatar, an anonymous Israeli official said that an agreement was "close, but we are not there".

They accused Hamas of previously "dictating, not negotiating" but said this has changed in the last few weeks.

"Yahya Sinwar was the main obstacle for a deal," they added. Sinwar, believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attacks, led Hamas following the assassination of his predecessor but was himself killed in October last year.

Under Sinwar, the Israeli official claimed, Hamas was "not in a rush" to bring a hostage deal but this has changed since his death and since the IDF "started to dismantle the Shia axis".

Iran 'weaker than it's been in decades'

Yesterday, President Biden also hailed Washington's support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.

"All told, Iran is weaker than it's been in decades," the president said.

Mr Biden claimed America's adversaries were weaker than when he took office four years ago and that the US was "winning the worldwide competition".

"Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are
weaker," he said.

"We have not gone to war to make these things happen."

The US president is expected to give a farewell address on Wednesday.

(c) Sky News 2025: Gaza peace deal could be done by end of week, Trump says, as Israel-Hamas talks resume