Israel is reportedly close to accepting a six-week ceasefire in Gaza to allow aid and release of hostages, a senior official from the Biden administration told reporters on Saturday.

“There’s a framework deal. The Israelis have more or less accepted it,” the official told reportes from multiple US outlets.

According to the official, the ceasefire would allow for tallks that will lead to a ‘more enduring’ solution to end the fighting in the strip.

The official, whose identity was not revealed by the US media, said that Hamas is yet to accept the proposal.

A key point in the mater is said to be Israel’s demand for a list of hostages, highlighting who is alive and who is dead.

President Joe Biden, who is increasingly feeling the heat from Arab-American voters over his Palestine policy, called for an ‘immediate ceasefire’ on Friday. Biden has also expressed hope that the ceasefire will begin before the month of Ramadan begins.

Mediators are expected to arrive in Cairo for talks in Sunday which could see a major breakthrough towards a ceasefire. Reuters quoted Egyptian security sources to say that delegations from hamas and Israel would be part of the talks.

The mediators for the agreement reportedly belong to Egypt and United States.

However, concerns have also been expressed that the agreement reached could be temporary in nature and the Israeli offensive could begin again after the issue of hostages is settled.

Attacks by Hamas in Israel on October 7 last year led to 1m200 people being killed while 253 were taken hostage according to Israel.

In response, Israel launched air and land attacks in the Gaza strip killing at least 30,000 people including thousands of children.