Israel’s Walla news site is citing senior Israeli officials who support US claims that two days of talks in Doha have made significant progress towards reaching a deal for a ceasefire in Gaza, Al Jazeera reports.

During the talks, Israeli negotiators were able to narrow the gaps on remaining points of contention with mediators, according to the Israeli officials cited by Walla.

Unlike in previous rounds of talks, Israeli negotiators were given serious room to manoeuvre by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, added the Israeli news outlet, citing an unnamed US official.

But, despite the reported progress, it remains to be seen if talks continuing next week will ultimately result in a deal.

Next week “may end in a hostage deal and a ceasefire in Gaza, but alternatively, it could also end in the collapse of talks and regional escalation with Iran and Hezbollah,” reported the news site.

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