NEW YORK, October 30. /TASS/. The negotiations to liberate the hostages held by Hamas stalled after the group demanded that Israel allow deliveries of fuel to the Gaza Strip on October 27, NBC reported citing three current and former US and Israeli officials.

According to the sources, the negotiations broke down on Friday, October 27, before Israel started the second stage of its offensive in Gaza.

"Talks were going very well on Thursday, and negotiators were hopeful a deal could be reached over the weekend. But differences emerged early Friday, which led to talks stalling," an unnamed diplomat with knowledge about the talks said.

A former US official explained that this failure was connected to Hamas’ "insistence to receive fuel," while negotiators from Israel, the US and other states sought to get as many of their citizens liberated as possible.

However, the ex-official believes that the talks are at a "temporary impasse," and the diplomat source agrees with this viewpoint. According to the diplomat, "the escalation has slowed down talks, but they’re still ongoing."

On October 20, the Hamas military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, announced the liberation of two female US citizens, as mediated by Qatar. On October 29, IDF Spokesman Daniel Hagari said that there are at least 239 hostages still held in the Gaza Strip.

On October 27, Hagari said that the IDF was expanding the scale of its ground operation in Gaza and carrying out airstrikes at Hamas underground and infrastructure facilities.