Negotiations on a ceasefire in Gaza are set to begin in Cairo on Sunday, with Israel readying detailed prisoner lists and withdrawal maps, according to Israeli media.
The Israeli website Ynet reported on Saturday that Egypt was handling the logistical arrangements for the talks, while US officials were pressing all sides to overcome obstacles that derailed previous rounds.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held late-night consultations with security chiefs and key ministers, including Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Defence Minister Israel Katz.
Far-right ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir were excluded, after both voiced opposition to US President Donald Trump's proposal.
Dermer will head the Israeli delegation, which has prepared both lists of Palestinian prisoners and maps of a phased military withdrawal from Gaza, drawn from Trump's plan.
An Israeli source told Ynet that Hamas had agreed to negotiate on the basis of Trump’s announcement but resisted limiting the talks to the first stage, which calls for the release of all Israeli captives within 72 hours.
The source said the process was likely to be "difficult, complex and lengthy".
US envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to arrive in Egypt to oversee the talks, according to AFP. Gershon Baskin, who mediated the 2011 prisoner exchange with Hamas, told Ynet that Witkoff had indicated the US had a plan to redeploy Israeli forces in a way that allows Hamas to locate and gather captives for release.
A source quoted by the outlet said Hamas had little operational room and was focused on linking prisoner releases to Israeli withdrawals from areas under its control, including Gaza City.
He suggested that freeing captives could take up to a week, not the 72 hours envisaged by Washington.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Hamas had rejected the US demand to turn Gaza into a demilitarised zone, though it may agree to place what it calls "offensive weapons" in storage in Egypt while keeping "defensive arms".
Arab mediators told the paper that Izz al-Din Haddad, who took command of Hamas’s armed wing after the killing of Yahya and Mohammed Sinwar, was open to compromise but unwilling to give up light weapons.
Hamas has already signalled opposition to other clauses of Trump's plan, including international-Arab oversight and any continued Israeli military presence in the enclave.
The movement has said it would accept a technocratic Palestinian administration backed by Arab states, while maintaining a political role in the wider national process. Trump's proposal excludes Hamas and other Palestinian groups from any future governance of Gaza.
Israeli Channel 12 also confirmed that the talks will begin in Cairo, with Washington aiming to prevent delays seen in previous rounds. Yedioth Ahronoth cited informed sources as saying that Hamas views a week as the realistic timeframe for prisoner releases, not 72 hours.
On Saturday, the Israeli army warned Gaza residents that areas north of Wadi Gaza remain "dangerous combat zones", saying its forces continue to encircle Gaza City. The army urged civilians to move south, describing any return north as a "serious risk".
Meanwhile, Palestinian factions said Hamas's reply to Trump's proposal was the product of joint consultations and aimed at protecting national interests. In a statement, they called for an urgent national meeting to discuss the handover of Gaza’s administration to an independent Palestinian body and to address broader political questions.
Hamas on Friday formally told mediators it accepted Trump’s proposal to release all captives, alive and dead, in exchange for a ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal, saying it was ready to enter detailed negotiations immediately.