More than 200 people are said to have been brought to Gaza after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said there were only “minor” challenges remaining to an agreement to release some of the more than 200 people captured in Gaza after Hamas’ attack on Israel last month.

Sheikh Mohammed, a former foreign minister, gave few additional details or a timeline.

“The remaining challenges in the negotiations are very small compared to the major challenges. They are more logistical; They are more practical,” he said at a joint press conference with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

Qatar acted as Mediator in negotiations to free prisoners from Hamas’ October 7 surprise attack on Israel that killed at least 1,200 people.

After the attack, Israel launched one relentless air and ground campaign in the besieged Gaza Strip and bombed the densely populated area with the aim of destroying Hamas. More than 13,000 people have been killed in the past few weeks.

Borrell, who was due to meet the Emir of Qatar before traveling to Jordan, called for the “unconditional release” of all prisoners and condemned Hamas for the attack.

“There is no hierarchy between horrors, one horror does not justify another horror,” he said, calling for an end to escalating violence and the creation of “sustainable peace” in the region.

The Reuters news agency reported on November 15 that Qatari mediators had sought an agreement between Israel and Hamas to exchange 50 prisoners in return for a three-day ceasefire, which would help increase emergency aid deliveries to civilians in the Gaza Strip, and quoted an official informed about the discussions.

At the time, the official said they had agreed on general outlines but that Israel was still negotiating details.

On Saturday, the Washington Post newspaper reported that a tentative agreement had been reached to release the women and children among the prisoners in exchange for a break in fighting.

Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said all parties would stop fighting for at least five days and prisoners would be released in small groups.

The US newspaper’s report was rejected by the White House, saying talks on a deal were continuing. On Sunday, US President Joe Biden told reporters he could not say when the prisoners might be released. “I want to make sure they’re out and then I’ll tell you,” he said at an event in Virginia.

Sheikh Mohammed said on Sunday such reports were “counterproductive” and that the negotiation process had gone through ups and downs.

“I think I’m more confident now that we’re close enough to reaching an agreement that can get people back to their homes safely,” he said.

The talks continue as Israel prepares to expand its ground offensive against Hamas into the southern half of the Gaza Strip.

The United States, Israel’s main ally, is urging caution as Gaza’s 2.3 million people struggle to find a safe place to stay out of the line of fire.

The civilian death toll in Gaza is “shocking and unacceptable,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Sunday as he renewed his call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.

Israel has so far rejected all calls for a ceasefire.