US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he expects negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza to resume.

Blinken met with officials from Qatar who have acted as mediators alongside others from Egypt. He said they want to act after the death last week of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

Blinken told reporters, "We talked about options to capitalize on this moment and the next steps to move the process forward, and I anticipate that our negotiators will be getting together in the coming days."

The Israeli prime minister's office released a statement saying the head of the Mossad intelligence agency, David Barnea, will travel to Doha on Sunday. He will meet with the prime minister of Qatar and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

US news site Axios reports Egyptian mediators have proposed what they call a "small" deal. They have suggested that Hamas release a small number of hostages in exchange for a ceasefire lasting about two weeks.