Indirect negotiations aimed at concluding a ceasefire agreement between the Israeli Defense Forces and Hamas in the Gaza Strip have once again reached an impasse, according to press reports.

Israeli officials said Hamas “continues to refuse” to produce a list of hostages who remain alive in the hands of its militants in the Gaza Strip, the Times of Israel newspaper reported yesterday (Wednesday).

For its part, the Wall Street Journal noted that Arabs, who are mediating the talks, do not expect the parties to return to the negotiating table until after Republican President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in and takes office on January 20.

Mr Trump had threatened Hamas that he would “pay dearly” if the hostages had not returned to their homes before his inauguration – he never made clear what he meant.

Negotiations brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the US never came to fruition after the only ceasefire agreed upon, for a week in November 2023.

The picture presented in the reports is in stark contrast to the optimism of the previous weeks. In mid-December, Israel’s defense minister Israel’s defense minister was asserting that a deal was closer than ever.

The tone of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine was similar.

However, according to reports, Hamas is insisting on the condition that the war end with the agreement, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government rejects.

According to both media outlets, Hamas officials argue that it will take time and a cessation of hostilities for the movement to determine where the hostages are and what their condition is. The Israeli side is incredulous, the Times of Israel noted.