Gaza ceasefire can be reached but may take more time, Israeli officials say

JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Gaps in Gaza ceasefire talks under way in Qatar between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas can be bridged but it may take more than a few days to reach a deal, Israeli officials said on Tuesday.

The new push by U.S., Qatari and Egyptian mediators to halt fighting in the battered enclave has gained pace since Sunday when the warring sides began indirect talks in Doha and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set out to Washington.

Netanyahu met on Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump, who said on the eve of their meeting that a ceasefire and hostage deal could be reached this week. The Israeli leader was scheduled to meet Vice President J.D. Vance on Tuesday.

Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, who played a major role in crafting the ceasefire proposal, will travel to Doha this week to join discussions there, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters earlier on Monday.

The ceasefire proposal envisages a phased release of hostages, Israeli troop withdrawals from parts of Gaza and discussions on ending the war entirely.

Hamas has long demanded an end to the war before it would free remaining hostages; Israel has insisted it would not agree to end the fighting until all hostages are released and Hamas dismantled. At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in Gaza are believed to still be alive.

Palestinian sources said on Monday that there were gaps between the sides on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Senior Israeli officials briefing journalists in Washington, said it may take more than a few days to finalize agreements in Doha but they did not elaborate on the sticking points. Another Israeli official said progress had been made.

Israeli minister Zeev Elkin, who sits in Netanyahu's security cabinet, said that there was "a substantial chance," a ceasefire will be agreed. "Hamas wants to change a few central matters, it's not simple, but there is progress," he told Israel's public broadcaster Kan on Tuesday.

The war began on October 7 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages into Gaza.

Israel's subsequent campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, displaced almost the entire population of more than 2 million people, sparked a humanitarian crisis in the enclave and left much of the territory in ruins.

(Reporting by Jerusalem newsroom; Writing by Maayan Lubell, Editing by William Maclean)