Mediators on Wednesday rushed to broker a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas that would free hostages held in Gaza, after more than a year of devastating war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and destroyed much of the enclave.

Neither Israel nor Hamas have publicly endorsed the deal, and Israeli and US officials said they were awaiting a final response from Hamas. The Palestinian group said on Tuesday that the talks had entered the “final phase”.

Negotiators and mediators in Qatar have been trying to resolve outstanding issues, according to two officials familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity about sensitive diplomacy.

Those questions included maps of how Israeli forces would redeploy inside Gaza during the cease-fire, as well as lists of Palestinian prisoners slated for release in exchange for Israeli and foreign hostages, one of the officials said.

Israel also demanded a system to prevent armed fighters from returning to the northern Gaza Strip. Mediators are also trying to iron out details of inspections of hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians who are expected to head to northern Gaza from the south, where many are displaced, in the event of a ceasefire, the official said.

The latest round of negotiations is being held in Qatar, a key mediator alongside Egypt and the United States. Majed al-Ansari, a spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry, said on Tuesday that the two sides had overcome major differences.

But to implement the deal, Hamas’ negotiating team in Doha must also win the consent of the group’s commanders in Gaza, including Mohammad Sinwar, whose brother Yahya led the group before becoming killed by Israel in October.

Hamas officials did not respond to questions about whether Mr. Sinwar had responded to the proposal.

In Israel, some hardline members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government have also expressed opposition to the deal. But on Wednesday, Gideon Saar, Israel’s foreign minister, he said he believed that the majority would sign the agreement if there was a vote in the government.

Months of shuttle diplomacy have failed to end the Gaza war, which began after Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 that killed 1,200 people and took 250 hostage. About 105 prisoners were later released in a week-long ceasefire in November 2023 in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.

Since then, Israel and Hamas have held numerous rounds of indirect talks, which eventually collapsed due to mutual accusations. Officials familiar with the negotiations expressed cautious optimism, noting that there is always the possibility that the talks will collapse.

The current deal is largely similar to the three-phase ceasefire framework that President Biden announced in late May, according to several officials familiar with the talks. Israel and Hamas would first honor a six-week truce in which Hamas would release women, elderly men and sick hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinians jailed by Israel.

Under the proposal, Israel and Hamas would then declare a “permanent cessation of hostilities,” Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza, and the remaining live hostages would be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners. But the details were the main point of contention: Hamas demanded that Israel commit to ending the war, which Israel resisted.