There are increasing indications that a ceasefire agreement is close, amid cautious optimism from the US administration, which is seeking to achieve a breakthrough before the end of Joe Biden's term on January 20, and the Palestinian factions' announcement that the agreement is "closer than ever."

Talks to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Hamas and Israel were mostly complete, but key issues still need to be resolved, reports said Sunday. One major sticking point is Israel's continued military presence in the Philadelphi Corridor, a strategically important strip of land in southern Gaza along the border with Egypt.

The talks include the creation of a possible buffer zone several kilometers wide along Gaza's border with Israel, with Israel maintaining a military presence within this area.

According to reports, with these issues resolved, a three-stage ceasefire could be agreed upon within days.

Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front announced, after their meeting in Cairo, that reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza is "closer than ever," provided that Israel does not set "new conditions."

In a statement on Telegram on Saturday, the group said it held a meeting in Cairo on Friday regarding ongoing negotiation efforts with representatives from the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

The deal includes the exchange of 20 Palestinian prisoners for every female soldier released in the first of three phases of a ceasefire.

The names of the prisoners have not yet been agreed upon but they will be chosen from among about 400 names serving sentences of 25 years or more in Israel.

These are not believed to include prominent Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, who Israel is expected to release.

The Israeli hostages will be released in stages, as Hamas is believed to still need to locate some of the missing hostages.

Of the 96 hostages still being held in Gaza, Israel assumes that 62 are still alive.

Civilians in Gaza will reportedly be able to return to the north, under an Egyptian/Qatari-supervised system, and there will be about 500 trucks a day carrying aid into the Strip.

In the final stage of the three-stage plan, which will see the end of Israel's more than 14-month war on Gaza, Gaza will be overseen by a committee of technocrats from the Strip, who will have no previous political affiliations but will have the support of all Palestinian factions.

In recent weeks, the United States, Qatar and Egypt have resumed mediation efforts and reported greater willingness on both sides to strike a deal.

A round of talks in mid-October failed to reach an agreement, with Hamas rejecting a short-term ceasefire proposal.

Hamas carried out an unprecedented attack on the Gaza envelope area in southern Israel on October 7, in which 1,200 Israelis were killed, including 311 soldiers, and 251 others were captured, according to official Israeli statements.

More than 100 hostages were released during a temporary ceasefire in the last week of November 2023.