Hamas source tells Al Jazeera that it sent word of its acceptance of a ceasefire proposal to Qatari and Egyptian mediators.
Thousands of people flee eastern Rafah after Israel orders people to evacuate as fears of a full-blown military assault on the city sheltering more than one million displaced people grow.
Hamas says any Israeli military offensive on Rafah in southern Gaza will not be a “picnic”, adds it is “fully prepared” to defend Palestinians.

Meanwhile, talks in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, appeared to stall and the Israeli cabinet voted unanimously to close Al Jazeera’s operations in the country.
At least 34,735 people have been killed and 78,108 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attacks stands at 1,139, with dozens of people still held captive.
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