Hamas said on Saturday that it rejected Israel's "formulation" of extending the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza, on the day the first stage of the deal was set to expire. The group's spokesperson Hazem Qassem also told Al-Araby TV there were no current talks for a second ceasefire phase in Gaza with the group.

The military was supposed to begin withdrawing from that region in early March if the current ceasefire, which expires Saturday, were extended.

The corridor includes the Rafah crossing, which was Gaza’s only outlet to the outside world not controlled by Israel until the Israeli army captured the entire corridor last May.