US adviser Jake Sullivan in Israel for ceasefire negotiations

US President Joe Biden’s national security adviser is leading negotiations in Israel as part of a new initiative to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza.

Jake Sullivan met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday afternoon.

His visit comes as Israeli forces continue their military operations in Gaza, particularly in the southernmost city of Rafah.

Hundreds of thousands of people evacuated the city on orders from Israeli forces.

Mr. Sullivan is expected to push Israel to avoid a full-scale attack on the city of Rafah. The United States has already said it will stop supplying certain weapons if Israel launches a major ground offensive on the city.

However, an Israeli official told the Reuters news agency that Mr Netanyahu and his top aides would try to reach an agreement with Mr Sullivan on the need for a move towards Rafah.

On Sunday, Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Gaza said at least 20 people were killed and several injured in a missile strike on the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. The Israeli military said it was verifying the reports and added that two soldiers were killed in fighting in the south on Saturday.

Discussions have taken place in the past about a possible ceasefire, but to no avail.

Earlier this month, Hamas supported a proposal put forward by Egyptian and Qatari mediators. But Israel said the proposal accepted by Hamas was not the same as the one it had already accepted.

Israel also rejected a proposal for a “permanent” ceasefire and said releasing the bodies rather than the hostages was not acceptable.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza to destroy Hamas in response to the group’s attack on southern Israel last year, in which around 1,200 people were killed and 252 others taken hostage.

Since then, more than 35,456 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.