Israel is considering proposals to exchange prisoners, and Hamas links any agreement to ending the war. Israel estimates that there are about 136 prisoners in Gaza, while it holds at least 8,800 Palestinians in its prisons.
The mini-ministerial council meeting comes a day after a four-party meeting was held in Paris to discuss the features of a new exchange deal. With Qatari-Egyptian-American mediation, Hamas and Israel reached a temporary humanitarian truce that lasted for a week until December 1.