INTERNATIONAL mediators appeared to be making progress last night in talks on a further extension of the Gaza truce, encouraging Hamas militants to keep freeing hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners.

However, no agreement had been confirmed as the Morning Star went to press, so, by this morning, Israel may have resumed its brutal military operation against the besieged coastal enclave where over two million Palestinians are trapped with little access to the essentials of life.

The Israelis government has welcomed the release of dozens of hostages in recent days and pledged to maintain the truce if Hamas keeps freeing captives.

However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed yesterday that Israel would resume its campaign to eliminate Hamas, which has ruled Gaza for 16 years and orchestrated the deadly attack on Israel that triggered the war

“After this phase of returning our abductees is exhausted, will Israel return to fighting? So my answer is an unequivocal yes,” he said. “There is no way we are not going back to fighting until the end.”

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken plans to visit the region this week to press for further extensions of the truce and hostage releases, although Washington continues to give overall support to Israel’s bloody offensive.

Diaa Rashwan, head of Egypt’s state information services, said that negotiations on prolonging the truce had made progress and that it was “highly likely” that an extension would be announced last night. Egypt, along with Qatar and the US, played a key role in mediating the original ceasefire and a two-day extension announced on Monday.