The US president's comments come as a Pentagon spokesperson denied that US aid airdrops have resulted in civilian deaths in Gaza after reports that five Palestinians were killed on Friday.

US President Joe Biden has said reaching a six-week ceasefire deal in Gaza before the start of Ramadan is “looking tough”.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon has denied that US aid airdrops caused civilian casualties in Gaza on Friday. Palestinian officials reported that five people were killed and several others were wounded when boxes of aid fell on them by mistake. Footage showed dozens of people running around as the boxes were dropped.

The British Foreign Secretary, Lord Cameron, revealed earlier that the UK had been involved in the new maritime corridor “from the start” and had been “helping with the pre-screening of aid”.

However, despite welcoming the US development, he urged Israel to open its own port of Ashdod which could be used to deliver aid while the port is built, describing the lack of aid getting into Gaza as “frustrating”.