US President Donald Trump said a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas may be reached next week, following what he described as a “positive” response from the Palestinian resistance group to a US proposal, media reports said Friday.

“There could be a deal on a Gaza ceasefire by next week,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding that he had not yet been briefed on the status of the negotiations, according to Arab News.

Hamas said it “has submitted its positive response” to Egyptian and Qatari mediators and was “fully prepared to immediately enter into a round of negotiations regarding the mechanism for implementing this framework.”

A Hamas official said the group seeks guarantees for a full withdrawal of Israeli forces and a lasting truce.

Trump reportedly promised that a 60-day ceasefire could be extended if needed.

The ceasefire push came amid continued violence.

At least 20 Palestinians were killed Friday while attempting to access aid, according to officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.

The UN said 613 Palestinians have been killed in the last month while seeking food.

Israeli airstrikes on Gaza’s Muwasi area killed 15 people, including eight women and a child, according to local hospitals. Israel’s military said it was reviewing the incidents.

The current war began when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, on Oct. 7, 2023.

Gaza health officials said more than 57,000 Palestinians have since been killed.

Despite international calls for a ceasefire, Israel has pursued a genocidal war on Gaza, killing more than 57,200 Palestinians, most of them women and children, since late 2023.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave. (Anadolu Agency)