DOHA/CAIRO - Qatar has told Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel it will stall its efforts to mediate a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal until they show "willingness and seriousness" to resume talks, its foreign ministry said on Saturday (Nov 9).

The Gulf country has been working alongside the United States and Egypt for months on fruitless talks between the warring sides in Gaza and any disengagement from that process could further complicate efforts to reach a deal.

The Qatari ministry also said press reports on the future of the Hamas political office in Doha were inaccurate without specifying how. Reuters had on Friday quoted a US official saying Washington had asked Qatar to expel the group and that Doha had passed this message on to Hamas.

An official briefed on the matter also said on Saturday that Qatar had concluded that with its mediation efforts paused, Hamas' political office there "no longer serves its purpose."

But three Hamas officials speaking off the record said the group had not been informed by Qatar that its leaders were no longer welcome in the country.

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