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Israel launched fresh strikes on Gaza on Sunday and Monday killing scores of Palestinians, as officials involved in the ongoing ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel��continued to voice cautious optimism that the two sides could be close to an agreement.

Indirect talks between Hamas and Israel mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the US were reignited in Doha last week, rekindling hopes that a ceasefire could be close.��

Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Sunday that there is confidence among Israeli and American officials that a deal could be agreed in the coming days, with one senior US official suggesting that it could happen this week.

"The feeling is that there will be a deal. It seems that Hamas is on the issue and wants a deal so as not to upset Donald Trump," the US official was quoted as saying.

Gaps between the two sides remain but there appears to be "good will on both sides to move forward with the deal", the report added.

This comes a day after Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine said that a deal is "closer than ever"��after holding three-way talks in Cairo.

The deal on the table would see the Israeli army fully withdraw from the Rafah border crossing and partially pull back from the Gaza-Egypt border during an initial 60-day phase, ������'s Arabic language sister publication,��Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported last week.

"Most points related to the ceasefire and prisoner exchange issues have been agreed upon," a Hamas leader said on Saturday. "Some unresolved points remain, but they do not hinder the process. The agreement could be finalised before the end of this year, provided it is not disrupted by [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu's new conditions."

Israel kills scores in fresh strikes

Meanwhile, Israel continued to launch several attacks across Gaza, killing dozens of Palestinians overnight.��

Medical sources told Al-Jazeera Arabic that at least 50 Palestinians were killed in a series of attacks that targeted the so-called humanitarian 'safe zone' in al-Mawasi and schools in Nuseirat refugee camp and Gaza City.

International charity Oxfam also said on Monday that Israel has allowed just 12 trucks of food and water in north Gaza over the past two-and-a-half months, accusing the Israeli army of��systematically obstructing the delivery of aid.

The almost complete blockade of food and water has been ongoing since early October when the Israeli military began implementing the so-called ‘General’s Plan’ to force civilians out of Gaza’s north. The plan, drawn up by former security officials, called for starving civilians out of the area and treating any who remained as military targets.

Since early October, the Israeli military has prevented international aid organisations from delivering assistance to the area’s starving inhabitants and has attacked some of the few trucks that were allowed in, Oxfam said.

Of the 12 that were allowed to enter, three of the aid shipments were attacked by Israeli soldiers and drones within hours of being delivered.

"It is abhorrent that despite international law being so publicly violated by Israel and starvation being used relentlessly as a weapon of war, world leaders continue to do nothing," said Sally Abi-Khalil, the charity’s Middle East and North Africa director.

"We plead with the entire international community – stop this, now. You have the diplomatic and economic levers to make Israel stop."

Israeli forces have also completely destroyed almost three-quarters of the buildings in the Jabalia refugee camp, in the north, leaving the area a "ghost town", Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported Sunday.

Israel has killed at least 45,317 Palestinians and wounded over 107,713 since October 2023. The war on the enclave has destroyed most of the territory’s infrastructure and forced the population into a deep humanitarian crisis.

A succession of international rights monitors have recently accused Israel of carrying out a genocide against the Palestinian people. South Africa has also launched a genocide case against Israel with the International Court of Justice, with evidence including statements made by Israeli politicians and obstructing essential aid.��

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant have been accused of war crimes by the International Criminal Court.��

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