New round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations begin without Hamas

US, Qatar, Egypt and Israel meet in Doha in effort to prevent fighting spiralling into region-wide Middle East conflict

A new round of negotiations aimed at brokering a ceasefire in the war in Gaza and preventing the fighting from escalating into a region-wide conflict has begun, as the death toll in the Palestinian territory reached a grim milestone of 40,000 people, according to local health authorities.

Mediators from the US, Qatar and Egypt met an Israeli delegation in the Qatari capital of Doha on Thursday afternoon, with talks expected to continue into the next day. Hamas, the Palestinian militant group, is not directly participating in the talks, meaning expectations of a breakthrough are low.