Hamas said it is prepared to release American-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander and the bodies of four dual nationals held hostage in Gaza.

Hamas said Saturday it will only release an American-Israeli and the bodies of four other hostages if Israel implements their ceasefire agreement, calling it an ''exceptional deal'' aimed at getting the truce back on track.

The announcement comes as talks continue in Doha to try to broker the second stage of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, the first phase of which ended two weeks ago.

The second was Israel’s history of decision-making, particularly when it comes to Palestinians: Phased deals don’t usually work. Case in point is the phased, conditional Oslo peace process during the 1990s that Palestinians saw as a path to an eventual Palestinian state and a permanent end to the conflict, neither of which materialized.

An Israeli strike killed a notable Hamas official, according to The Associated Press. Palestinian parliament and political bureau member Salah Bardawil was among a minimum of 26 killed in Israeli strikes in southern Gaza stretching from Saturday night into Sunday morning,