The talks would mark the first time both Israeli and Hamas officials joined indirect negotiations since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Stalled talks aimed at securing a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza are expected to resume in Qatar as soon as Sunday, according to several reports.

The talks would mark the first time both Israeli and Hamas officials joined indirect negotiations since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

International mediators had hoped to secure a six-week truce before the start of Ramadan earlier this week, but Israel had rejected a Hamas demand for a permanent ceasefire.

The talks on Sunday, involving Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egyptian officials, are slated to address the “remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas”, including issues of prisoner releases and humanitarian aid, a source told Reuters.

Meanwhile, AP reported that Hamas gave mediators a new proposal for a three-stage plan that would end the fighting, according to two Egyptian officials – one who is involved in the talks and the second who was briefed on them.

The first stage would be a six-week truce that would see the release of 35 captives – women, those who are ill and older people – held in Gaza in exchange for 350 Palestinian detainees held in Israeli prisons.

Hamas would also release at least five female soldiers in exchange for 50 prisoners, including some serving long sentences, for each soldier.

Israeli forces would withdraw from two main roads in Gaza, let displaced Palestinians return to northern Gaza, which has been devastated by Israeli bombardment, and allow the free flow of aid to the area, the officials said.

In the second phase, the two sides would declare a permanent ceasefire and Hamas would free the remaining Israeli soldiers held captives in exchange for more prisoners, the officials said.

In the third phase, Hamas would hand over the bodies it’s holding in exchange for Israel lifting the blockade of Gaza and allowing reconstruction to start, the officials said.

A high Israeli official is expected to lead the talks on Sunday, though they could get pushed to Monday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed the proposal as “unrealistic,” a response that has been highly expected due to his incessant refusal to end the war on Gaza.

Despite mounting global pressure stemming from the Israeli genocidal onslaught in Gaza and its catastrophic Palestinian death toll, attempts to broker a ceasefire have not been successful this year.

Netanyahu’s office announced on Friday it gave the green light to military plans to launch an offensive in Rafah, the southernmost town in Gaza, where approximately 1.4 million displaced Palestinians seek refuge.

Despite warnings from the United States and other nations about the potential catastrophic consequences of such an operation, Israel remains stubborn in its determination to continue its genocidal war in the area.

Following Israel’s war in Gaza that began on October 7, many Palestinians have been forced to be displaced and seek shelter in Rafah.

Netanyahu’s office said that the Rafah operation would entail the evacuation of civilians, although it fell short in providing specifics and a timeline for this plan.

The military announced intentions to supposedly direct Palestinian civilians to designated “humanitarian islands” in central Gaza on Wednesday.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said: “We have to see a clear and implementable plan” to safeguard innocent civilians in Rafah from an Israeli incursion.

“We have not seen such a plan,” he notified.

Since the beginning of the war on October 7, 2023, Israel has killed at least 31,553 Palestinians while wounding 73,546 others, according to Wafa.

As of Tuesday, at least 27 people, including 21 children, died due to malnutrition and dehydration, according to Wafa. The figure has likely gone up since amid the continuation of the war and blockade.

Since February, Israel has carried out deadly attacks on Palestinians seeking aid in Gaza, with harrowing images of blood-stained flour bags surfacing all over social media.

Israel carried out the latest such massacre on Friday, killing dozens of Palestinians at the Kuwait roundabout in Gaza City while they were waiting to receive aid. Sources told Wafa that Israeli forces’ warplanes and drones fired at the crowd of people.