Qatar's lead negotiator on the talks, Mohammed al-Khulaifi, says in an interview with CNN: "Our work is not done.

"We're still going to continue to talk more to the parties, to de-escalate, to seek a longer period of ceasefire."

He adds that initially the Israelis were not considering even a temporary pause in fighting "so we remain hopeful".

"Our efforts are not going to stop to this level. We're going to continue working."

The start time for the pause in fighting will be announced "within the next few hours", according to a new statement, external from Qatar's ministry of foreign affairs.

A spokesperson says work is continuing with both Israel and Hamas along with partners in Egypt and the US "in order to ensure rapid start of the pause and provide what is necessary to ensure the parties adherence to the agreement."

As we've been reporting, the four-day pause in fighting - that was expected to start on Thursday - has been delayed until at least Friday.

The delay is down to last minute details of which hostages will be released and how, a Palestinian official tells the AFP news agency.

We'll bring you more details when we have them.

We've got the first pictures of Lord Cameron in Israel - he's visiting Kibbutz Be'eri, just three miles from the Gaza Strip.

More than 130 people were killed in the kibbutz during the Hamas attacks on 7 October.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron has arrived in the Middle East on his first visit to the region since he returned to government last week.

Lord Cameron will meet both Israeli and Palestinian leaders to discuss the deal to release hostages and get more humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Israel's military says it has hit 300 Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, in an update about its offensive this morning.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) says on X, external that it launched attacks "from the air in the last day, including operational headquarters, underground combat tunnels, IED warehouses, IED production sites and anti-tank launching positions".

The IDF says it targeted the area around Jabalia in northern Gaza and "destroyed" a tunnel it discovered in ​​Beit Hanoun.

A US warship on patrol in the Red Sea shot down several multiple attack drones launched from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen, the US Central Command said in an X post, external on Thursday.

"The ship and crew sustained no damage or injury," it added.

Yemen's Houthi rebels are part of an Iranian-led network of regional militant groups who call themselves the "Axis of Resistance". The Hamas fighters and Lebanon's Hezbollah group are also part of this network.

Yolande Knell
BBC Middle East correspondent, in Jerusalem

While the time for this long-awaited deal to take effect hadn’t been officially announced, the added wait only increases the anguish for relatives of Israel’s more than 200 hostages.

Palestinian prisoner families also remain on stand-by to see which detainees from a list of 300, published by Israel, could be freed. Last night, a senior Israeli official said that the first handovers would take place according to the original agreement, but no sooner than tomorrow.

The White House said logistical details were still being worked out.

At least 50 Israeli captives – all children and women – are expected to be released at least ten at a time over four days. A pause in fighting could then be extended day-by-day, as long as additional hostages are freed.

With no truce yet in effect, the intense fighting has continued in Gaza overnight. Aid agencies have said they’re ready to increase the volume of food, fuel and medical supplies reaching Gaza but that a temporary truce is insufficient to help.

Image source, Getty Images

Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters in Melbourne gathered at the centre of the Australian city earlier today, with dozens holding up a large flag in the shape of a watermelon.

The fruit, which bears the colours of the Palestinian flag, is a symbol for Palestinian solidarity. It was first used for this purpose after the six-day war between Israel and its neighbours in 1967. Back then, Israeli authorities criminalised public displays of the Palestinian flag in Gaza and the West Bank.

Image source, EPA

Image source, EPA

Image source, Hen Avigdori

Some family members of hostages have told us the deal between Israel and Hamas offers a glimmer of hope, but they dare not be too optimistic.

"Hope has been the only thing that kept us going over the past 48 days," says Hen Avigdori, an Israeli comedy writer whose wife Sharon and daughter Noam were abducted by Hamas fighters on 7 October.

"But I am also very cautious, I don't get my hope too high. As I explained to my 16-year-old son and all the family, till the day I see the girls with my own two eyes, we won't believe anything," Hen said.

Here's more from others eagerly awaiting their loved ones' return.

Five members of Hezbollah - the powerful Iranian-backed militia in Lebanon - have been killed in an Israeli strike in Beit Yahoun, south Lebanon, according to the Shia Islamist group.

Abbas Raad, son of senior Hezbollah figure and Lebanese lawmaker Mohammad Raad was one of them, the group says.

According to Reuters news agency, a total of 85 Hezbollah fighters have now been killed since violence broke out along the Israel-Lebanon border.

Israel's army said it struck several Hezbollah targets in Lebanon on Wednesday evening, including "terror infrastructure" and "terror cells" that tried to launch rockets into Israel and fired at Israeli troops.

Hezbollah is the largest political and military force in Lebanon. It is classed as a terrorist organisation by the UK, US and the Arab League.

The White House is hopeful that release of hostages can begin early Friday, with its spokeswoman stressing that the deal between Hamas and Israel is "on track".

The agreement - which includes a four-day pause to fighting - was scheduled to take place 10:00 local time (08:00 GMT) on Thursday.

“The deal was agreed and remains agreed. The parties are working out final logistical details particularly for the first day of implementation,” according to reports quoting the US National Security Council's spokeswoman Adrienne Watson.

“Our primary objective is to ensure that they are brought home safely. That is on track and we are hopeful that implementation will begin on Friday morning.”

Israel's national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said late Wednesday that the deal would not take place before Friday but did not explain why.

Israel's public broadcaster Kan, citing an Israeli official, had earlier reported that the change in timing was because the agreement was not signed by Hamas and mediator Qatar, but added that they were optimistic it would be implemented upon signing.

As we've been reporting, the agreed pause in fighting is yet to begin - and Palestinian news agency Wafa has reported dozens of people killed in Israeli attacks on Wednesday.

The foreign minister of the Palestinian Authority (PA), Riyad al-Maliki, has said 52 of those killed in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza on Wednesday morning belonged to the same family.

"Only this morning, from the Qadoura family in Jabalia, 52 people have been wiped out completely, killed," he said during a trip to London.

"I have the list of the names, 52 of them, they were wiped out completely from grandfather to grandchildren."

The BBC has not been able to verify this independently. As a reminder, the PA is based in the occupied West Bank and is entirely separate to Hamas.

Image source, Getty Images

If you're just joining us, you can catch up on our previous live coverage of the Israel-Hamas war here.

It's currently just past 06:30 in Israel and Gaza, here's a quick look at what's happened over the last few hours.

• A senior Israeli official has said hostages being held in Gaza will not be freed before Friday
• In a statement, Israeli PM Netanyahu's national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said talks on the deal were continuing. Israel's Foreign Minister had earlier said he expected the first hostages to be released on Thursday
• Under the planned agreement, 50 Israeli hostages taken by Hamas would be released and 150 Palestinian women and teenagers in Israeli jails would be freed
• The deal comes more than six weeks after the conflict first began on 7 October, when Hamas launched attacks from Gaza into Israel, killing at least 1,200 people and taking about 240 others hostage
• A local Israeli government source told the BBC that a pause in fighting, which was also initially due to begin on Thursday at 10:00 local time (08:00GMT), has also been delayed

Together with my colleague Kelly Ng, I'll be bringing you the latest developments as soon as we know them. Stay with us.

Image source, Ditza Heiman family

The BBC has been tracking reports and stories of the people taken hostage by Hamas.

It says it has hidden the hostages in "safe places and tunnels" within Gaza. Israel Defense Forces have previously said the hostages include children, and between 10 and 20 over-60s.

One of those was Ditza Heiman, 84.

She was seen by a neighbour at kibbutz Nir Oz being led away by Hamas gunmen, her niece said.

A former social worker, she is the widow of Zvi Shdaimah, who came to the UK on the Kindertransport, the organised rescue of children from Nazi-controlled areas during World War Two.

You can read more stories of the hostages here.