Gaza/Tel Aviv, 4 May 2024 (dpa/MIA) - A delegation from the Islamic militant group Hamas will head to Cairo on Saturday to continue discussions for a possible deal to end the fighting in Gaza, the group said late on Friday.

"While we emphasize the positive spirit with which the movement’s leadership responded when it studied the ceasefire proposal that it recently received, we are going to Cairo in the same spirit to reach an agreement," a Hamas statement said.

It added that Hamas and the "Palestinian resistance forces are determined to mature the agreement, in a way that fulfils the demands of our people for a complete cessation of aggression, the withdrawal of the occupation forces, the return of the displaced, relief for our people, the start of reconstruction, and the completion of a serious exchange deal."

According to a Hamas source there are still some points to be discussed and there was also a need for more clarification. Once these had been clarified, the movement would announce its final stance.

"But I can tell you and according to the statement which the movement just sent the response will be positive," the Hamas source told dpa.

Months of mediation by Egypt, Qatar and the United States between Israel and Hamas have yet to result in a breakthrough. A diplomatic push to clinch a deal has picked up momentum in recent days.

Militants killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel on October 7 and abducted another 250 to Gaza. Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground operation, in which more than 34,500 Palestinians have been killed so far.

The body of a man assumed to be among the Israeli hostages was found on Israeli territory on Friday, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Since the body was only discovered months after the unprecedented massacre committed by Hamas and other militants in southern Israel, the man had been believed to be among those taken to Gaza, it said.

The army said it had informed the victim's relatives after the remains were identified through extensive forensic examinations.

According to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the man had been working as a security guard for the Nova music festival, which had taken place close to the border with the Gaza Strip and was among the places targeted in the attacks.

In this capacity, he had saved numerous festival guests from the fighters before he himself was murdered, it said.

As part of a temporary truce agreement, Hamas released 105 hostages during a week-long ceasefire at the end of November. In return, Israel released 240 Palestinian prisoners from its jails.

Several weeks ago, Israel had assumed that just under 100 of the 130 remaining hostages were still alive. However, it is now feared that significantly more of them may already be dead.

The ongoing fighting in Gaza continues to have devastating consequences for both the hostages and the Palestinian population, with the threat of famine still hanging over the war-torn coastal area, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

More food has reached the sealed-off Gaza Strip in recent weeks, but the WHO's representative to the Palestinian Territories, Rik Peeperkorn, said the risk of famine has not yet been averted.

The WHO reported that more than 40 severely malnourished children under the age of 5 have been brought to hospitals in the Gaza Strip with additional health problems since March.

Some 2-year-olds weighed only around 4 kilograms, far under the average weight of 10 to 14 kilograms.

Before the outbreak of fighting in October, malnutrition was practically non-existent in the territory.

The consequences of childhood malnutrition will be far-ranging, said Peeperkorn. "We will see the effects for years to come," he added.

Ahmed Dahir, the WHO's top doctor in Gaza, told reporters in Geneva via video link that the supply of food was still fragile and that he "cannot say the risk of famine is past."

According to Palestinian health authorities, a total of around 25 malnourished children have died in the territory in recent weeks.

Peeperkorn emphasized that the children had not starved to death, but that malnutrition had contributed to the complications that ultimately led to their deaths.

The information provided by the Palestinian authorities cannot be independently verified, but UN officials have previously considered their estimates to be reliable.

Photo: MIA archive