The United States has put forward a new proposal that would secure the release of a handful of living hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a month-long extension of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, a source familiar with the negotiations said.

Israeli fire has killed eight people in the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours even as a fragile ceasefire with Hamas has largely held.

The two sides are supposed to negotiate a second phase of the cease-fire agreement that would end the war, but they remain far apart on how to move forward.

A fresh round of Gaza ceasefire talks has begun in the Qatari capital Doha between representatives of Hamas and Israel. A senior Hamas official Abdul Rehman Shadid in a statement expressed hope that the current round of negotiations would lead to tangible progress toward beginning the second phase of ceasefire.

An Israeli air strike killed four Palestinians in Gaza, the territory's civil emergency service said, as Arab mediators and the United States tried to hammer out differences between Hamas and Israel over a January 19 ceasefire agreement.

Israel’s proposal to extend first phase of truce to 60 days comes without it fulfilling its commitment to a full withdrawal f rom Gaza Strip or a permanent ceasefire.

An Israeli delegation in Cairo is negotiating to extend the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire when it expires on Saturday rather than move to the second phase as originally planned and as Hamas wants,