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Hamas and the Israel may reach a ceasefire deal in Gaza within a few days unless "Israel puts more obstacles", a senior official of Hamas said Wednesday.Ìý

Speaking to °®Âþµº, the Turkey-based Hamas official said, "We decided to make concessions in order to make the negotiation efforts successful and stop the war on Gaza to spare our people further Israeli crimes."

The official, who preferred to be anonymous, noted that "most of the gaps have been ended, and the Qatari, Egyptian, and the US mediators received our positive answer for the current negotiations."Ìý

"The ball is in the Israeli court, and we wish that the Israeli prime minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] would put more obstacles in the way of the deal," he added.Ìý

The expected ceasefire will be implemented in three stages, according to the official.ÌýDuring the 60-day first stage, the Israelis will withdraw from city centres while remaining partially in the Netzarim and Philadelphi axes.Ìý

All women and children will be allowed to return to the northern Gaza Strip, and in a later and gradual stage, the return of men will take place according to an agreed-upon mechanism.

He explained that persistent attempts are being made to include men on the stage as well, and negotiations are still ongoing.

Meanwhile, the Israeli occupation will release several Palestinian prisoners, including dozens of those sentenced to life imprisonment, while Hamas will release several hostages from Gaza.Ìý

In addition, the official said that the occupation government will work to allow the opening of the Rafah crossing for patients to travel and to allow the entry of aid into the Gaza Strip, where the number of trucks reaches 600 per day.

As for the second stage of the agreement, during which all remaining Israeli military prisoners, alive or dead, including senior officers, will be exchanged in exchange for Israel releasing several Palestinian prisoners that have not been finally agreed upon, including a number ranging between 100 and 150 prisoners against whom Israeli sentences were issued for long periods of imprisonment.

In this stage, as well, Israel will complete its military withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, while forces will remain in the eastern and northern border areas.

In the third stage, it is planned to declare the end of the Israeli war on the Palestinian Gaza Strip, begin procedures to lift the siege and open the crossings normally, and launch the process of rebuilding and reconstructing the Strip, including arranging an international donors' conference.

Hamas officially issued a statement confirming that in light of positive talks taking place in Doha under the auspices of the Qatari and Egyptian mediators, reaching a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement is "serious and possible" if the occupation stops setting new conditions.

Defence Minister Israel Katz said that the deal is "closer than ever" after "things that were obstacles in the past" have disappeared.