Washington said that direct talks with Hamas were not for the purpose of negotiation but rather to "convey the American position in a different way."

This was stated by the spokeswoman for the US State Department, Tammy Bruce, in a press conference.

In response to a question about the meeting of the US Special Envoy for Prisoner Affairs, Adam Boehler, with Hamas leaders in Qatar, Bruce said on Thursday: “If I have a conversation with someone, this is not a negotiation, this is a transfer of the American position in a different way.”

She stressed that there was no change in the US position towards Hamas.

In response to a question about Washington's support for Israel's decision to block humanitarian aid to Gaza, Bruce said: "Aid can only be provided within a safe framework."

She claimed that the cessation of aid does not represent a renunciation, but rather a reflection of the ongoing situation on the ground, she said.

On Sunday, the Israeli government decided to stop the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, hours after the end of the first phase of the ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement between Hamas and Tel Aviv, and the latter’s obstruction of entering into negotiations for the second phase.

The war on Gaza left more than 160,000 Palestinian martyrs and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 14,000 missing.