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Hamas said it was ready to “immediately sit at the negotiating table” following what it described as “some ideas from the American side aimed at reaching a ceasefire agreement”.

Their statement came soon after United States President Donald Trump said he had issued his “last warning” to Hamas to accept a deal to release hostages in Gaza.

“The Hamas Movement welcomes any initiative that supports efforts to end the aggression against our people and affirms its readiness to immediately sit at the negotiating table to discuss the release of all prisoners,” the Palestinian militant group said.

In exchange, it wanted “a clear declaration of the end of the war, a full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and the formation of a committee of independent Palestinians to manage the Gaza Strip, which would begin its duties immediately”.

Earlier, Trump posted on social media: “The Israelis have accepted my terms. It is time for Hamas to accept as well. I have warned Hamas about the consequences of not accepting. This is my last warning.”

Militants seized 251 hostages during the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, with 47 still in Gaza.

The Israeli military says 25 of them are dead. Israel is seeking the return of their remains.

Israel’s Army bombed a Gaza City residential tower today - the third in as many days - after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the military was “deepening” its assault on the Gaza Strip’s key urban centre.

A day earlier, Israeli protesters took to the streets to call on their Government to reverse the decision to seize Gaza City, fearing for the fate of hostages believed to be held there.

The October 7, 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,368 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.

Tens of thousands took to the streets of Brussels today to express support for the Palestinian cause, days after Belgium’s Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said the European Union’s credibility was “collapsing” because of its failure to act.

Police put the turnout at 70,000, while the organisers said 120,000 had marched through the capital.

Belgium has said it will recognise the State of Palestine at this month’s UN General Assembly, and has imposed new sanctions against Israel.

The EU has so far failed to take action against Israel because of deep divisions among its 27 members.

-Agence France-Presse