Qatar, Egypt and the United States have called on Israel and Hamas to resume negotiations to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, as continued Israeli bombardment of the territory has killed nearly 40.000 Palestinians and raised fears of further regional escalation. "Al Jazeera". 

In a joint statement, the three countries called on Israel and Hamas to "resume urgent discussions" on August 15 in Doha or Cairo "to close any remaining gaps and begin implementing the agreement without further delay."

"It is time to conclude a cease-fire agreement and release the hostages and prisoners." "We have been working for months to reach a framework agreement and it is now on the table, only the implementation details are missing," they said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office quickly responded to the call, saying in a statement that Israel would send a delegation to attend the talks next week "in order to finalize the details and implement the framework agreement."

Hamas, the Palestinian political faction that governs Gaza, has yet to respond.

The joint statement comes amid months of failed attempts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, where Israel's military offensive since early October has killed at least 39.699 Palestinians and injured 91.722.