Hamas on Saturday released another video showing hostages being held in the Gaza Strip, as officials in Israel and Riyadh speculated about possible progress on a ceasefire deal between the Palestinian Islamist group and Israel.
In the video, two hostages said they supported a deal between the Hamas and Israel's government to release the remaining detainees being held in the Gaza Strip.
In the undated recording, one of the men said he had been in captivity for 202 days. Saturday marked 204 days since the mass killings and kidnappings in southern Israel on October 7.
The man said he regretted not being able to celebrate Passover with his family this year. The important Jewish holiday started on Monday evening.
The video was highly produced, showing short clips of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant interspersed with the hostages' comments. The men spoke in Hebrew, but an Arabic translation accompanied their words.
It was initially unclear under what circumstances the video was made and whether the two men spoke of their own free will or under duress. Israel says Hamas uses these videos to psychologically terrorize the hostages' families.
The second hostage - a man who, according to Israeli media, also holds US citizenship - called in the video for demonstrations to continue in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem for the release of the hostages.
Further demonstrations attended by thousands of people took place on Saturday evening across Israel, with some calling for the resignation of right-wing leader Netanyahu.
On Wednesday, Hamas released a video of a well-known hostage, a 24-year-old dual US-Israeli citizen who was kidnapped from a music festival in southern Israel on October 7.
His arm had been blown off during the terrorist attack, which killed many of his friends, and the video showed him with one arm ending in a stub shortly below his shoulder.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz on Saturday held out the prospect of postponing a planned military offensive in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza in the event of a hostage agreement with Hamas.
"The release of the hostages is our top priority," Katz told Israel's Channel 12 on Saturday. Also citing the minister, the Kan channel reported that Israel was prepared to postpone the military operation if a hostage deal was reached.
Hamas said it is currently examining an Israeli proposal for a ceasefire and the release of further hostages.
Israel has said an advance into Rafah is necessary to eliminate Hamas forces, which is the stated goal of its military offensive in the wake of the unprecedented October 7 attacks.
The president of the World Economic Forum (WEF) added to the speculation earlier on Saturday when he reported some apparent progress in the negotiations.
"There is some movement in the talks about the hostages and a possible way out of the impasse we are in," Børge Brende said in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia is hosting a WEF business conference in Riyadh on Sunday and Monday. Parallel to this, foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan will meet on Monday in Riyadh with their US, German, British, French and Italian counterparts, the diplomatic sources said.
Key figures attending include US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, whose country is mediating between Hamas and Israel.
US media outlet Axios reported, citing two senior Israeli officials, that Israel had warned that this round of talks would be the "last chance" to strike a deal before its Rafah operations begin.
Axios and Israeli media reported that Hamas and Israel are at loggerheads over the scope of the deal, including how many hostages could be released and how long the ceasefire would last. Hamas is demanding a permanent ceasefire, which Israel rejects.
Israel's allies and critics have for months implored Netanyahu to call off the invasion of Rafah, fearing mass civilian casualties. More than 1 million displaced Palestinians from other parts of the Gaza Strip have taken shelter there.
The Hamas-controlled health authority puts the number of people killed in Gaza at 34,388. More than 77,400 people have been injured. The authority does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
The Gaza war was triggered by the massacre of more than 1,200 people by militants from Hamas and other groups in Israel on October 7.