US President Joe Biden has said he is “hoping” for a ceasefire deal in the Israel-Hamas conflict by the holy month of Ramazan but the agreement was still not sealed, AFP reports.

“I’m hoping so, we’re still working real hard on it. We’re not there yet,” he told reporters at the White House when asked if he expected a deal by Ramazan, which will start on March 10 or 11, depending on the lunar calendar.

“We’ll get there but we’re not there yet, we may not get there,” Biden added, without elaborating, as he headed to his helicopter to spend the weekend at the presidential Camp David retreat.

Biden has said the incident could complicate talks, but would not comment Friday on what was holding up a deal, adding: “I’m not going to tell you that because that’ll get involved in the negotiations.”