Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said on Tuesday that talks on the second phase of a ceasefire in Gaza will begin this week, noting Tel Aviv's demand for "complete demilitarization" of the Strip.

The Israeli newspaper, "Jerusalem Post", quoted Sa'ar as saying in a press conference that the security cabinet "agreed yesterday evening (Monday) to begin negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire in Gaza this week."

Sa'ar added: "Talks on the second phase of the Gaza prisoner swap deal are expected to begin this week."

He also pointed out that "Israel demands the complete disarmament of the Gaza Strip."

The second phase negotiations were scheduled to begin on the 16th day of the Gaza ceasefire that went into effect on January 19.

On Tuesday, an unnamed Israeli political source said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had "pledged" to allow the entry of mobile homes (caravans) and engineering machinery into Gaza in exchange for the release of six living Israeli prisoners and the return of the bodies of four others.

Earlier on Tuesday, the official Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported, citing an unnamed Israeli source, that the "cabinet" proposed expanding the first phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza to include the entry of mobile homes and engineering equipment into the Strip in exchange for the release of six Israeli prisoners.

On Monday evening, a meeting held by the "cabinet" ended without the Israeli Prime Minister's Office issuing a statement regarding it or the results that were reached.

On Sunday, the Director General of the Government Media Office in Gaza, Ismail Al-Thawabta, confirmed that none of the mobile homes and heavy equipment required to rehabilitate the infrastructure destroyed by Israel had reached the Strip, “which exacerbates the humanitarian crisis.”