Mediators have been shuttling between Israeli and Hamas negotiators since July 6 as they scramble to end nearly two years of war in Gaza where fears of mass starvation are growing. Through 21 months of fighting both sides have clung to long-held positions preventing two short-lived truces being converted into a lasting ceasefire.

When Israel launched its controversial US-backed aid plan for Gaza, it aimed to stop Hamas’s alleged profiteering from the seizure and sale of humanitarian supplies.