BARI, Italy, June  13, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - G7 leaders on Thursday called on

Palestinian militant group Hamas to accept a roadmap towards a ceasefire in

Gaza announced by US President Joe Biden in May.

The UN Security Council had supported the plan and "now it is important

that everyone implements it," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at the Group

of Seven summit in Italy.

 "We therefore call on Hamas in particular to give the necessary consent so

that this can now work," he said.

  Biden launched a new US effort late last month to secure a truce and

hostage release.

  However the deal remains uncertain as Hamas officials have insisted that

any ceasefire agreement must guarantee a permanent end to the war -- a demand

Israel has firmly rejected.

 Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is hosting the summit, said she

confirmed "the unanimous support for the US mediation proposal for an immediate

ceasefire in Gaza".

 The G7, which also includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the

US, also called for "the release of all hostages, and for a significant

increase in humanitarian assistance to the civilian population of Gaza", she

said.

    The Gaza war began after Hamas's unprecedented October 7 attack on southern

Israel which resulted in the deaths of 1,194 people, mostly civilians,

according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

  The militants also seized 251 hostages. Of these, 116 remain in Gaza

although the army says 41 are dead.

  Israel's retaliatory military offensive has left at least 37,232 people

dead in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-ruled territory's

health ministry.