The Hamas chief says he is close to a truce agreement with Israel. Even as the Israeli military continued its murderous assault on Gaza and rocket fire into Israeli territory, the leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas told Reuters on Tuesday that his organization was close to reaching a ceasefire agreement with Israel.

According to a statement that Ismail Haniyeh made and that Haniyeh’s assistant provided to Reuters, Hamas officials are “close to reaching a truce agreement” with Israeli authorities, and the group has provided its response to Qatari mediators.

The statement did not include any further information. Still, a Hamas source told Al Jazeera TV that negotiations were focused on determining how long the truce would last, making arrangements for the delivery of aid into Gaza, and negotiating the swap of Israeli captives held by Hamas for Palestinian detainees in Israel.

According to the official, Issat el Reshiq, both parties have agreed to release women and children. Qatar, which is mediating the negotiations, will reveal the specifics after they have been worked out.

During their assault on Israel on October 7, which resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people, Hamas captured approximately 240 captives.

According to a statement released by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Geneva, on Monday, Haniyeh met with Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in Qatar to “advance humanitarian issues” related to the conflict. She also separately conferred with Qatari government officials.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) stated that it was not a party to the negotiations that were taking place to secure the release of the hostages; nonetheless, as a neutral intermediary, it was prepared “to facilitate any future release that the parties agree to.”

Since a few days ago, rumors have circulated about a possible forthcoming hostage trade. Last week, Reuters reported, citing an individual who was briefed on the talks, that Qatari mediators were pursuing an agreement for Hamas and Israel to exchange 50 captives in return for a three-day truce that would improve emergency relief supplies to Gaza civilians. The official briefing on the talks said this would be in exchange for a three-day ceasefire.

On Sunday’s episode of ABC’s “This Week,” Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog expressed his expectation that a deal would be reached “in the coming days.” At the same time, Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, stated that the remaining sticking issues were “very minor.”

On Monday, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and other U.S. officials expressed optimism that a deal was close to being reached; however, there have been prior instances in which an agreement appeared very close.

“Sensitive negotiations like this can fall apart at the last minute,” White House Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said on Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” program. “Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.”

In response to an attack by Hamas on October 7, Israel invaded Palestinian territory to target the organization. This attack occurred on Israel’s bloodiest day in its history, which spans 75 years.

Since then, the government of Gaza, which Hamas administers, has stated that the persistent Israeli bombardment has resulted in the deaths of at least 13,300 Palestinians. This number includes at least 5,600 children and 3,550 women.

On Monday, Hamas announced through its official Telegram account that it had fired a salvo of rockets in the direction of Tel Aviv. Additionally, witnesses stated that missiles were fired in the central region of Israel.

HOSPITALS That Are In Danger

The Palestinian news agency WAFA reported on Tuesday that the Israeli bombing of the Nuseirat camp located in the center of Gaza at midnight resulted in the deaths of at least seventeen Palestinians.

Israel did not immediately state this in response to the news. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, Israeli tank fire into the Israeli tank-encircled Indonesian Hospital complex on Monday resulted in at least 12 Palestinian deaths and numerous injuries.

The Israeli military reportedly opened fire on a hospital that had 700 patients and staff members. According to WAFA, artillery shells have struck the building in the town of Beit Lahia in the northeastern region of Gaza that Indonesian organizations supported. The employees of the hospital denied that there were any armed insurgents present on the grounds. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization, expressed his “appalled” reaction to the attack, which he stated had resulted in the deaths of 12 people, including patients, citing unidentified accounts.

The Israeli Defense Forces stated that forces had fired back at fighters inside the hospital while taking “numerous measures to minimize harm” to non-combatants. The IDF also stated that they had taken “numerous measures to minimize harm” to non-combatants.

The Indonesian Hospital, like the rest of the medical facilities in the northern half of Gaza, has mostly suspended operations but is continuing to provide shelter for patients, workers, and residents who have been displaced.

On Monday, thirty-two infants who were born preterm and were being treated in Gaza’s largest hospital, Al Shifa, were transferred to an Egyptian facility for emergency care.

Last week, Israeli forces captured Shifa to investigate claims that Hamas had constructed a tunnel network beneath the hospital. Over the weekend, hundreds of patients, medical professionals, and displaced people left Shifa. Doctors claimed that troops had ejected them, while Israel claimed that the departures were voluntary. Israel is claiming that the exits were voluntary.