Smoke billows during Israeli bombardment in Rafah on the southern Gaza Strip on Feb 6, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)

JERUSALEM/DOHA/CAIRO - Israel's Mossad intelligence agency said in a statement on Tuesday that it received Hamas's reply to a Qatari proposal for a ceasefire deal in Gaza and was studying it.

"Hamas's answer was forwarded by the Qatari mediator to the Mossad and its details are studied in depth by all the parties involved in the negotiations," the statement read.

Earlier on Tuesday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said Hamas has officially replied to the suggested framework for a hostage exchange deal involving individuals still held in Gaza in exchange for a prolonged ceasefire.

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The reply "includes some comments, but in general it is positive," Al Thani said. "We are optimistic and we have delivered the response to the Israeli party," he said, adding that due to the sensitivity of the circumstances, no further details would be provided at this stage.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also confirmed that officials had received Hamas's response and he would discuss it with Israeli leaders during his visit to Israel on Wednesday

Al Thani made the remarks at a joint press conference in Doha with visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Blinken also confirmed that officials had received Hamas's response and he would discuss it with Israeli leaders during his visit to Israel on Wednesday.

"There is still a lot of work to be done," Blinken said, adding that he believes that an agreement is possible.

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Blinken is on his fifth tour to the Middle East since the outbreak of the Hamas-Israel conflict in October last year. Blinken's visit to Doha followed stops in Saudi Arabia on Monday and Egypt early Tuesday. He is also expected to visit Israel and the West Bank during his tour which will end on Feb 8.

Meanwhile, Chairman of Egypt's State Information Service (SIS) Diaa Rashwan also said Egypt has received Hamas' response to the ceasefire proposal.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a joint press conference with Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, at Diwan Annex, in Doha, Qatar, Feb 6, 2024. (PHOTO / POOL VIA AP)

Egypt will continue to exert its utmost efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip soon, Rashwan said in a statement on Tuesday.

He stressed that Egypt will discuss all the details of the proposed framework with the concerned parties as soon as possible.

READ MORE: Blinken urges Israel to protect civilians in Gaza

Rashwan stated that Egypt had recently put forward a framework aimed at bringing viewpoints closer between all concerned parties to stop Palestinian bloodshed, reach a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, and restore peace and stability to the region.

Accordingly, he said, Palestinian prisoners and Israeli detainees will be exchanged in stages, and humanitarian support for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip will be intensified.

Rashwan stressed that Egypt will continue its intense efforts around the clock, to end the fighting in Gaza, and preserve the lives of the Palestinian people and their legitimate rights, and turning the proposal into an agreement is an essential first step toward such ends.

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More than 27,000 Palestinians have been killed from the Israeli attacks on Gaza, which were triggered by a surprise Hamas attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023, that Israel said killed about 1,200 people.