While months of mediated negotiations and shuttle diplomacy have failed to pin down a truce in the Gaza conflict, Washington has said it was still pushing all sides to finalise an agreement.

To bridge the remaining gaps, the United States is working “expeditiously” on a new proposal, AFP quotes State Department spokesman Matthew Miller as saying.

Miller said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will discuss the ceasefire drive with Egyptian officials on a visit there this week.

Blinken will “discuss ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza that secures the release of all hostages, alleviates the suffering of the Palestinian people, and helps establish broader regional security”, Miller said in a statement.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly rejected US assessments that the deal is nearly complete and has insisted on an Israeli military presence on the Egypt-Gaza border.