He said indirect negotiations were under way about the return of about 100 hostages and that, while it was still too early to be sure, prospects had improved.

“We can be more optimistic than before but we are not there yet. I hope we will be there,” Saar told a press conference in Jerusalem, reiterating Israel’s position that the hostages still held in Gaza must be returned before Israel agrees an end to the fighting.

“There will not be a ceasefire in Gaza without a hostage deal,” he said.

A Palestinian official with knowledge of the mediation effort said Hamas had asked other factions in Gaza to start listing the names of Israeli and foreign hostages in their custody, whether dead or alive.

The official gave no further details of the mediation effort but said the mediators, backed by the United States, had stepped up contacts with Israel and Hamas.

Hamas officials declined immediate comment.

An official of a militant group allied with Hamas expressed hope that talks could lead to a deal.

Hamas gunmen took over 250 hostages back to Gaza after their attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed some 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies. Over 44,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive on Gaza that followed, Gaza health authorities says.

Some hostage families voiced cautious optimism after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday. Netanyahu told them the time had come for a hostage deal, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.

Each side accuses the other of standing in the way of a deal but Saar said Hamas’ previous position “might have changed during recent times”.

“So if both parties are interested in an agreement, there is a better chance it will be achieved,” he said.