Negotiations between Israel and Hamas on the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire began Thursday, Egypt said, averting a

Israel introduced what it said was a new U.S. ceasefire plan and is trying to force Hamas to accept it by imposing a siege on the Gaza Strip.

Israel announced on Thursday it was sending negotiators to Cairo for talks, seeking to extend a first phase of a ceasefire due to expire in two days, in the apparent aim of securing the release of more hostages while delaying any final deal on Gaza's future.

Mughrabi and Jaidaa TahaJERUSALEM/CAIRO (Reuters) -Israel blocked the entry of aid trucks into Gaza on Sunday as a standoff over the truce that has halted fighting for the past six weeks escalated, with Hamas calling on Egyptian and Qatari mediators to intervene.

Israel’s government said early Sunday it supports a proposal to extend the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza through Ramadan and Passover.

The latest round of talks on the second phase of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has made "no progress," and it's unclear whether they would resume on Saturday, a senior Hamas official said.

The first phase of the ceasefire that paused 15 months of war between Israel and Hamas militants is set to end on Saturday. It’s unclear what comes next.

Israel has cut off the entry of all food and other goods into Gaza in an echo of the siege it imposed in the earliest days of its war with Hamas