White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Friday that the Biden administration is urging Hamas to sign a ceasefire agreement that would allow the release of the hostages, while Hamas announced the resumption of indirect negotiations with Israel regarding the truce in Gaza, Friday, in Qatar.

Kirby added that the White House welcomed Israel's decision to send another team to Doha to continue negotiations.

He stressed that America remains committed to working to ensure the maintenance of the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel.

Hamas announced in a statement on Friday that "indirect negotiations will resume today, Friday, in the Qatari capital, Doha."

The movement explained: "This round will focus on the agreement leading to a complete ceasefire, the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Gaza Strip and the details of implementation, and the return of the displaced to their homes from which they were expelled in all areas of the Strip."

Qatar, Egypt and the United States have been mediating talks between Israel and Hamas for months that have failed to end more than a year of devastating conflict in Gaza.

The Israeli occupation authorities announced that a mid-level Israeli negotiating team for the hostages held talks on Friday with Qatari mediators, who were also hosting Hamas representatives in Doha for parallel discussions, in an attempt to overcome the ongoing differences between the warring parties.

The talks had been stalled for about a week and a half after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recalled the Israeli negotiating team from Qatar for internal deliberations on December 25. Since then, optimism about a deal being reached before US President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025, has waned.

Axios quoted a senior Israeli official as saying that Israel and Hamas are still at an impasse on almost all the issues being negotiated, including the presence of the Israeli Defense Forces in the Netzarim and Philadelphi corridors, the Israeli demand to deport some Palestinian security prisoners released in the deal, the frequency of the release of hostages, and the date for starting negotiations on the second phase of the deal.

The main obstacle to reaching an agreement is the reluctance of the Israeli occupation authorities to agree to a permanent ceasefire.

Last December, Qatar expressed optimism that "momentum" would return to the talks after Donald Trump won the US presidential election.

But a war of words then broke out, with Hamas accusing Israel of setting "new conditions", while Israel accused Hamas of putting "new obstacles" to reaching an agreement.