As Israel and Hamas move closer to a ceasefire agreement, Israel says it wants to maintain troops in a southern corridor of the Gaza Strip — a condition that could derail the talks.

Hamas said it had responded on in "a positive spirit" to a U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire proposal and was prepared to enter into talks.

The U.S. President said Israel “agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize” a 60-day ceasefire, “during which time we will work with all parties to end the war.”