DOHA - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Feb 6 the United States was reviewing a response from Hamas to a framework on a deal for the release of hostages as part of an extended pause in fighting in Gaza.

Blinken said at a press conference in Qatar that he would discuss Hamas' response with Israeli officials when he visits the country on Feb 7.

Blinken declined to discuss the details of the response.

Washington would use every tool available to reach a pause in fighting that would build upon an earlier release of more than 100 hostages, Blinken said.

“There’s still a lot of work to be done, but we continue to believe that an agreement is possible, and indeed essential," Blinken said.

The United States was determined to use any pause in the fighting to build a diplomatic path forward to a "just and lasting peace" in the Middle East, he said.

Hamas hands response to Egypt, Qatar

Palestinian militant group Hamas said Feb 6 it handed its response on a truce deal aimed at halting the war with Israel to key mediators.

“A short while ago, the Hamas movement delivered its response to the framework agreement to the brothers in Qatar and Egypt,” a statement said, referring to “a comprehensive and full ceasefire”.

The militant group has for more than a week mulled the deal drawn up in its absence at Paris talks, as international pressure mounts to end the four-month war.

Hamas said the proposal was aimed at “ending the aggression against our people, securing relief and shelter, reconstruction, lifting the siege on the Gaza Strip, and completing the process of a prisoner exchange”.

Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said Doha had received a “positive” response from Hamas to the truce plans.

The Gaza war erupted on October 7 with an attack by Hamas militants which resulted in the deaths of about 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Militants from Gaza also seized around 250 hostages. Israel says 132 remain in Gaza including 28 who are believed to have been killed.

Israel’s withering military campaign has killed at least 27,585 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. REUTERS, AFP