A Hamas official has said that international mediators resumed negotiating with the group and Israel over a ceasefire in Gaza, adding that he is hopeful a deal to end the 14-month fighting is within reach, Al Jazeera reports.

Ceasefire negotiations were halted last month when Qatar suspended talks with mediators from Egypt and the United States because of frustration over a lack of progress between Israel and Hamas.

But there has been a “reactivation” of efforts in recent days to end the fighting, release captives from Gaza and free Palestinian prisoners in Israel, according to Basem Naim, an official in Hamas’s political bureau who spoke with The Associated Press news agency.