Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Security Cabinet has approved a unilateral ceasefire to halt an 11-day Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, according to reports.
The decision came following heavy US pressure to halt the offensive.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said reports of a move toward a ceasefire were 'clearly encouraging'.
Advert
She said the US was trying 'to do everything we can to bring an end to the conflict'.
Earlier, Israel had unleashed a new wave of airstrikes across the Gaza Strip as Hamas fired more rockets into Israel.
This reported ceasefire could represent the end of hostilities in Gaza for a while at least, after 11 days of sustained violence.
Netanyahu is reported to have convened his Security Cabinet, with the discussion of a ceasefire taking the centre stage.
Advert
An official from the Egyptian government, who is mediating the potential truce, claimed that Israel told their government that they intend to end military operations in Gaza.
The anonymous official said that an announcement will be made soon, but it is not official yet when the ceasefire could begin.
It has been claimed that the end of the fighting will start at 2.00am tomorrow morning.
Earlier on today there were more air strikes from the Israeli Defence Force, as well as rockets fired from inside Gaza towards Israel.
Advert
The UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres led calls for a truce between the two Middle Eastern countries and a UN Mideast envoy was sent to Qatar in the hope of brokering that peace.
Qatar often mediates discussions between Israel and Hamas, and has donated huge amounts of money in recent times to support humanitarian efforts and development in Gaza.
Osama Hamdan, one of the senior Hamas officials, spoke from Lebanon today also suggesting that they expected a ceasefire in the next 24 hours.
On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden said that he expected to see 'a significant de-escalation today on the path to a ceasefire'.
However, Netanyahu had said that he was 'determined to continue this operation until its aim is met'.
Advert
The current violence broke out on 10 May after days of rioting between Palestinian protesters and the Israeli police at the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem.
Israel has since launched hundreds of air strikes into Gaza and Hamas has fired rockets into Israel.
So far, 1,710 people have been injured, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, with 230 Palestinians killed, including 65 children.
Twelve Israelis have been killed.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: World News, Politics