Talks aimed at securing a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume seriously in Qatar tomorrow, Sunday, according to Egyptian officials.

The talks will be the first time Israeli officials and Hamas leaders join indirect negotiations since the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan. International mediators had hoped to reach a six-week truce before the start of Ramadan earlier this week, but Hamas rejected any agreement that does not lead to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, a demand Israel rejected.

However, in recent days, both sides have taken steps aimed at bringing the talks, which have not completely stopped, back on track.

Hamas presented mediators with a new three-stage plan proposal to end the fighting, according to Egyptian officials, one of whom participated in the talks and the other was briefed on them. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to reveal the contents of the sensitive discussions.

The first stage would be a six-week ceasefire that would include the release of 35 hostages – women, the ill, and the elderly – held by Hamas fighters in Gaza in exchange for 350 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

Hamas would also release at least five female soldiers in exchange for 50 prisoners, including some serving long sentences on terrorism charges, for each soldier. Officials said Israeli forces would withdraw from two main roads in Gaza and allow displaced Palestinians to return to the northern Gaza area destroyed by the fighting and allow the free flow of aid into the region.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday that nearly one in three children under the age of two in the isolated north suffers from severe malnutrition.

Officials said that in the second stage, both sides would declare a permanent ceasefire, and Hamas would release the remaining Israeli soldiers held as hostages in exchange for more prisoners.

Officials said that in the third stage, Hamas would hand over the bodies it holds in exchange for Israel lifting the siege of Gaza and allowing reconstruction to begin.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the proposal as “unrealistic.” However, he agreed to send Israeli negotiators to Qatar for further talks.

Egyptian officials said the talks are expected to resume on Sunday afternoon, although they may be postponed to Monday.

Netanyahu’s government rejected calls for a permanent ceasefire, insisting that it must first achieve its stated goal of "eliminating Hamas."

Netanyahu’s office also announced on Friday that it approved military plans to attack the city of Rafah in the far south of the Gaza Strip, which shelters about 1.4 million displaced Palestinians, more than half of the enclave’s population.

Many Palestinians fled to Rafah when Israel attacked Gaza following the Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7th, which killed 1,200 people and left 250 others hostage.

The United States and other countries warned that the military operation in Rafah could be catastrophic, but Israel says it plans to proceed with destroying Hamas brigades stationed there.

Netanyahu’s office did not provide details or a timeline for the Rafah operation but said it would include evacuating civilians. The army said it plans to direct civilians to "humanitarian islands" in central Gaza.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday that the United States has not yet seen a "clear and implementable plan" to protect innocents in Rafah from the Israeli incursion.

The Gaza health ministry said on Saturday that at least 31,553 Palestinians have been killed in the war. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and fighters in its count but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead.

An Israeli airstrike early Saturday destroyed a home in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, killing at least 19 people, including nine children, according to records from Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. An Associated Press journalist saw the bodies there.

The Israeli attack has displaced most of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents from their homes, and a quarter of Gaza’s population is suffering from hunger, according to the United Nations.

As part of efforts to deliver urgently needed aid to Gaza, a ship opened a sea route from Cyprus on Friday and unloaded 200 tons of humanitarian supplies sent by the global relief group Central Kitchen to residents of northern Gaza.

The group said on Saturday it is preparing another ship in Cyprus loaded with hundreds of tons of aid bound for Gaza.

Also on Saturday, Germany joined a group of countries, including the United States and Jordan, in carrying out air drops of aid over Gaza, while the United States also announced separate plans to build a dock to deliver aid.

Displaced Palestinians living in tents along the Mediterranean coast remained hungry and miserable. Zuhair Saqr in Al-Mawasi said, "The situation is so bad that no one can imagine it, and the ship, even if it helps, will be a drop in the ocean." "We are running like dogs after drops of air”.