A senior Hamas official has shared with the BBC a list of 34 hostages that the Palestinian group says it is willing to release in the first stage of a potential ceasefire agreement with Israel. It is unclear how many hostages remain alive.

The White House is hoping to see a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas concluded before Joe Biden leaves office, Antony Blinken has said.

Hamas has said it is ready to release 34 captives as part of a ceasefire deal with Israel, the Reuters and AFP news agencies have reported, citing an official with the Palestinian group. The Palestinian group,