While the Israel-Hamas fighting had subsided on Saturday following a truce called by the United Nations, violence continued in the conflict-torn Gaza Strip on Sunday, with the death toll crossing 1,000, leading the conflict between the two parties closer to the verge of being the deadliest in the last decade.
The Palestinian death toll rose to 1,035 on Saturday according to The Washington Post, inching closer to the 1,400-figure of Palestinian deaths during the 2009 conflict. The report said casualties on both sides were rising fast enough for the conflict to surpass previous Israel conflicts, not just with Gaza, in the last decade.
According to the New York Times, 46 Israeli deaths had been reported as on 27 July and 3,289 targets in Gaza had been struck by Israel while 2,325 rockets were launched at Israel from Gaza.
The death of 46 Israel soldiers in the conflict is also said to be Israel's largest death toll since its 2006 conflict with Lebanon.
UNICEF reported that 218 children had been killed in the violence so far, two-thirds of them being under the age of 12, The Guardian said.
The fear of the toll rising much higher comes from the fact that no diplomatic breakthrough has been possible in the 20-days old conflict. Despite a 24-hour truce called by the United Nations, firing continued from both sides.
US Secretary of State John Kerry, who was in Israel for a week to broker a truce, also returned to the US on Sunday with little success, NYT reported.
Also, the general consensus in Israel is reportedly that of annihilating Hamas completely this time. According to a Reuters, a poll by Israel's Channel 10 television on Sunday showed that 87 percent of respondents wanted Israel to continue the operation until Hamas was toppled. Another poll, published in the Jerusalem Post found that 86.5 percent of Israel's majority Jews opposed calling a truce.
However, there is increasing international pressure for a ceasefire in the conflict. The UN Security Council has called for "an immediate and unconditional humanitarian cease-fire" in the Gaza war. All 15 council members agreed to the statement, news agencies reported.
On Sunday, United States President Barack Obama called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to hold firing unconditionally.
