UPDATE 1605 GMT: Israel humiliated US Secretary of State John Kerry this weekend, not only rejecting his ceasefire proposal but portraying him as a weak, fumbling diplomat who had been co-opted by Hamas, Turkey, and Qatar.

See Gaza Analysis: How Netanyahu Is Sabotaging Kerry’s Ceasefire Proposal

Kerry’s response on Tuesday morning? He said that he had spoken with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who “has consistently supported a ceasefire”.


See Gaza Video: How Israel Destroyed a Neighborhood in an Hour
Syria Analysis: Using the Dead to Divert Attention from Israel’s Killing in Gaza


UPDATE 1535 GMT: The number of displaced using UN shelters in Gaza has passed 200,000 — more than 10% of the population — according to the spokesman of the UN refugee agency UNRWA:


UPDATE 1525 GMT: Israeli airstrikes have continued this afternoon. Targets included the Jabalia refugee camp, where at least eight people were killed and dozens injured.

Gazan officials said more than 100 people have been killed on Tuesday, taking the death toll past 1,200.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has condemned Israel’s attack knocking out the only plant providing electricity to Gaza:


UPDATE 0755 GMT: The latest wave of Israeli strikes has cut off electricity to Gaza, after shelling hit a fuel tank:


Israel renewed its airstrikes and bombardment on Gaza in the 22-day war on Monday, escalating attacks as it ended a humanitarian pause and comprehensively rejected a US ceasefire proposal.

More than 70 Gazans were confirmed dead on Monday, bringing the total to at least 1,110, with more than 6,500 wounded. In some of the heaviest attacks since it began operations on July 8, the Israeli military’s targets included the al-Shifa hospital complex, a refugee camp, Al Aqsa TV and Al Aqsa Radio, and the home of Hamas’s leader in Gaza, Ismail Haniya.

Haniya was unhurt, but 10 people — including at least eight children — were killed in the camp and several perished in the hospital complex.

The strike on the media tower, including the broadcasting facilities of Hamas:

The Israeli military sent messages to thousands of Gazans in towns across the Strip, urging them to flee their homes and seek shelter in Gaza City.

The UN refugee UNRWA said more than 167,000 Gazans are now sheltering in its schools and buildings.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose Government not only rejected the ceasefire over the weekend but also condemned US Secretary of State John Kerry through leaks to the media, pointed to a lengthy war in a televised address on Monday night:

We will not finish the mission, we will not finish the operation without neutralising the tunnels, which have the sole purpose of destroying our citizens, killing our children.

We need to be prepared for a protracted campaign. We will continue to act with force and discretion until our mission is accomplished.

Netanyahu spoke of a “painful day”, in which 10 Israeli soldiers were killed, including five by Gazan fighters who infiltrated Israel via a tunnel.

The deaths brought the Israeli military’s toll to 53 since its ground operations began July 17.

Two Israelis and a Thai farm laborer have been killed by Gazan rockets.

Hamas said on Monday that it had accepted a UN request for a further pause in hostilities, following a 16-hour halt on Sunday, to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan. However, Israel rejected the UN approach.

Netanyahu said in his speech, “The process of preventing the armament of the terror organisation and demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip must be part of any solution. And the international community must demand this forcefully.”