U.S. officials now assess that a ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza is improbable before President Joe Biden’s term concludes in January, as reported by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

The publication referenced unnamed senior officials from the White House, State Department, and Pentagon. These agencies did not provide immediate comments when approached. Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh stated to reporters on Thursday, prior to the report’s release, “I can assure you that we do not think the deal is disintegrating.”

Two weeks ago, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken indicated that 90% of a ceasefire agreement had been reached. For several months, the United States, along with mediators from Qatar and Egypt, has been striving to establish a ceasefire, yet has not succeeded in finalizing an agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Two significant hurdles remain: Israel’s insistence on maintaining military presence in the Philadelphi corridor, which lies between Gaza and Egypt, and the details surrounding the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners detained by Israel.

United States has indicated that a ceasefire agreement in Gaza could help alleviate tensions throughout the Middle East, amid concerns that the conflict may escalate further. On May 31, President Biden proposed a three-phase ceasefire plan, which he stated had received Israel’s agreement.

However, as negotiations faced challenges, officials have been suggesting for several weeks that a revised proposal would be forthcoming. The recent escalation in the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian conflict began on October 7, when Hamas launched an attack on Israel, resulting in the deaths of 1,200 individuals and the abduction of approximately 250 hostages, according to Israeli sources.

In response, Israel’s military operations against the Hamas-controlled territory have reportedly resulted in over 41,000 Palestinian fatalities, as per the local health ministry, displacing nearly the entire population of 2.3 million and triggering a humanitarian crisis, alongside allegations of genocide at the International Court, which Israel refutes.