The United States has put forward a new proposal that would secure the release of a handful of living hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a month-long extension of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, a source familiar with the negotiations said.

White House envoy Steve Witkoff presented an updated U.S. proposal for extending the Gaza ceasefire deal by several weeks in return for additional hostage releases by Hamas and the resumption of humanitarian aid to Gaza,

A ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement, which took hold in January, has halted Israel’s genocidal onslaught on Gaza, which has killed more than 48,500 victims, mostly women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.