Trump says Gaza truce likely 'this week or next' as Hamas accuses Israel of blocking progress

US President Donald Trump has expressed hope that a Gaza ceasefire could be reached "this week or next", following a meeting in Washington with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"There's a very good chance," Trump told reporters, while acknowledging there was no certainty: "There's nothing definite about war and Gaza and all the other places that we deal with."

A senior Israeli official told Reuters that a deal could be finalised before Netanyahu departs Washington.

Under the proposed terms, Israel would agree to a 60-day ceasefire. If Hamas disarms during this period, Israel would then offer a permanent truce. If not, the brutal military campaign would continue.

Hamas has agreed in principle to release 10 Israeli captives to support ongoing negotiations, but described the talks in Qatar as "tough" due to Israeli "intransigence".

The group’s core demands include guarantees for a permanent ceasefire, full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and unrestricted humanitarian aid.

According to Hamas official Taher al-Nunu, the group has already "offered the necessary flexibility to protect our people, stop the crime of genocide and allow the free and dignified entry and flow of aid to our people until we reach a complete end to the war".

Trump's aides claim only one issue remains unresolved. Hamas disputes this, telling Al Jazeera that several concerns remain, including who will manage aid distribution and whether Israeli troops will fully withdraw.

Despite the talks, Israeli airstrikes on Gaza continued Thursday. At least 24 Palestinians were killed, 13 of them reportedly waiting in line for humanitarian aid.

More than 700 Palestinians have died since May while seeking aid from distribution sites linked to the American-Israeli-owned Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

Israel also launched a helicopter strike on Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighbourhood, killing four people.

Eight European NGOs held a press conference in Brussels, calling for an immediate ceasefire and warning that Gaza's civilian infrastructure was being "systematically destroyed"

Since the start of the war in October 2023, Israel's assault on Gaza has killed at least 61,700 people, with entire neighbourhoods reduced to rubble. Amnesty International and other leading rights groups have described Israel's war on the besieged enclave as genocide.