Hamas says it is committed to ceasefire agreement announced by mediators

Palestinian resistance group Hamas is committed to the ceasefire agreement announced by mediators on Wednesday, senior group official Izzat el-Reshiq said on Thursday.

Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has said his cabinet won't meet to approve the Gaza ceasefire deal, accusing Palestinian resistance group Hamas of creating a "last minute crisis".

Without elaborating, Netanyahu's office accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the agreement in an attempt "to extort last minute concessions".

This is not the first time Netanyahu has scuttled the ceasefire talks by pulling the plug the at last moment.

Meanwhile, Israeli strikes across Gaza have killed at least 48 people over the past day.

Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said the 48 bodies of people killed since midday Wednesday were brought to several hospitals. Around half of the dead were women and children, Zaher al-Wahedi, head of the ministry’s registration department, told The Associated Press.

Thirty-three hostages are set to be released over the next six weeks in the ceasefire deal reached on Wednesday.

The remainder, including male soldiers, are to be released in a second phase that will be negotiated during the first. Hamas has said it will not release the remaining captives without a lasting ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal.