Qatar announced Saturday that it has paused its role as a mediator for a ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas due to a lack of willingness by the sides to reach an agreement.

Qatar has paused mediation efforts for a cease-fire in Gaza, saying it would resume only when the parties are serious enough to end “the brutal war.”

Qatar, alongside the United States and Egypt, has played a major role in rounds of so-far fruitless talks to broker a ceasefire to the year-long war in Gaza

The independent Famine Review Committee (FRC) said on Friday in a rare alert that there was a strong likelihood of imminent famine in parts of north Gaza with immediate action required from the warring parties to ease a catastrophic situation.

There is a strong likelihood that famine is imminent in parts of northern Gaza, where Israeli forces are conducting a major offensive, hunger experts warned Friday. An alert issued by the four experts called the humanitarian situation throughout the war-torn Gaza Strip “extremely grave and rapidly deteriorating” and worst in the north.