Israel-Hamas discuss possibility of increasing temporary ceasefire as four-day truce nears end

In a statement released Sunday evening, Hamas was quoted as saying by CNN that it wants “to extend the truce after the four-day period ends, through serious efforts to increase the number of those released from imprisonment as stipulated in the humanitarian ceasefire agreement.”

While Israel's war cabinet discussed the possibility of an extension on Sunday evening, a source told CNN, those conditions for one, as outlined in the initial truce, remain unchanged.

Earlier, Qatari officials said it is hoping to see the truce between Israel and Hamas extend further.

Qatar had played a central role in mediating the original agreement between the two groups earlier.

"What we are hoping for is that the momentum that has carried from the releases … and from this agreement of four days will allow us to extend the truce beyond these four days, and therefore get into more serious discussions about the rest of the hostages," Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Majed Al-Ansari, told CNN on Saturday.

Israeli authorities confirmed Sunday evening that Israeli soldiers received the third batch of hostages, including 13 Israelis, three Thais, and one Israeli-Russian man, released from the Gaza Strip.

Reacting to the development, US President Joe Biden posted on X: "Today, 13 more hostages – including a fellow American – were released by Hamas under a deal brokered and sustained through intensive U.S. diplomacy."

"We continue to press that additional Americans be released. And we will not stop working until every hostage is returned," he said.