[Source: Reuters]

Hamas signalled on Thursday that a crisis threatening to unravel an already fragile ceasefire in Gaza could be avoided even after trading accusations with Israel this week of ceasefire breaches.

The 42-day ceasefire has appeared close to failure since Hamas on Monday unexpectedly announced it would stop releasing hostages, leading Israel to respond with a threat to return to war.

Hamas said it did not want the deal to collapse, though it rejected what it called the “language of threats and intimidation” from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump. They have said the ceasefire should be cancelled if the hostages are not released.

Hamas, whose Gaza chief leader Khalil Al-Hayya is visiting Cairo for talks with Egyptian security officials, also said both Egyptian and Qatari mediators would press on with efforts “to remove obstacles and close gaps”.

Israeli government spokesman David Mencer later told reporters that three hostages must be released alive by Hamas on Saturday for the ceasefire to continue.

Hamas accused Israel this week of failing to respect stipulations calling for a massive increase in aid deliveries and said it would not hand over the three hostages due to be released on Saturday until the issue was resolved.

Israel has also accused Hamas of breaching the agreement, including on Thursday evening when the military said Hamas had fired a rocket from Gaza that landed in the enclave.

The military subsequently struck the launcher, it said.

A source in the Hamas-run police said the rocket was an unexploded Israeli ordinance that had ignited and fired into the air while it was being moved away from a residential area.

Reuters could not independently verify the claims.

After Hamas announced it would stop releasing hostages, Netanyahu ordered reserves to be called up and threatened to resume combat operations that have been paused for almost a month unless the hostages were returned.

Avi Dichter, a member of Netanyahu’s security cabinet, told Israeli public radio on Thursday that he did not believe Hamas would be able to get out of the agreement.

Egyptian security sources told Reuters they expected heavy construction equipment to enter on Thursday and if that happened then Hamas would release hostages on Saturday.

The standoff between Israel and Hamas has threatened to reignite their conflict, which has devastated Gaza and taken the Middle East to the brink of a wider regional war.