Doha: Qatar announced on Tuesday that mediators are actively working towards advancing to the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. "Mediation efforts are ongoing to ensure that the current ceasefire does not collapse amid (Israeli) violations of the agreement that are causing concern," Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari stated during a press conference in Doha. He emphasized that every violation of the ceasefire in Gaza poses a threat to the deal and diminishes its effectiveness. "The ceasefire is in place and we are building on it, and we are working to turn it into a path that leads to the second phase of the agreement," al-Ansari added.

According to Anadolu Agency, Israel's stance on commencing negotiations for the next phase of the ceasefire agreement is contingent on the return of the bodies of all its captives. Israel asserts that the remains of two Israeli captives are still in Gaza, whereas Hamas maintains that it has returned all 20 Israeli captives who were alive and the remains of all 28 who were killed. Meanwhile, the Gaza Media Office reports that there are 9,500 missing Palestinians, killed by the Israeli army, whose bodies remain under the rubble.

The ceasefire agreement, which took effect in Gaza on October 10 under Trump's Gaza plan, brought a halt to two years of Israeli attacks. These attacks resulted in the deaths of over 70,000 Palestinians, predominantly women and children, and injured more than 171,000 others since October 2023. Despite the ceasefire, Israel has been accused of repeatedly violating the agreement by opening fire on Palestinian civilians in areas not under its control, while Hamas has expressed its full commitment to the terms of the agreement and has called on the US to pressure Israel to adhere to the deal.

Gaza's Health Ministry reports that at least 357 Palestinians have been killed and over 900 others injured in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire.