The United States and the United Nations have condemned the fresh violence that has begun between Israel and Gaza after the completion of the 3-day truce on Friday morning.
As Israel renewed strikes on Gaza soon after a 72-hour cease-fire expired saying they were responding to rockets fired by Hamas, the US and UN urged both sides to cease hostilities.
While White House spokesman Josh Earnest said that both the parties should work towards a 'sustainable ceasefire', the UN added that deaths of innocent civilians were 'intolerable'.
Five people were killed in Gaza, while two Israelis were injured by motors on Friday alone, after Hamas rejected an extension to the truce citing Israel's unwillingness to meet its demands.
According to a UN report, after the ceasefire expired, rescue teams have retrieved additional bodies, bringing the cumulative death toll of Palestinians to 1,922, of whom 1,407 are believed to be civilians, including 448 children.
On the Israeli side, 67 have been killed so far including 64 soldiers, three civilians including one foreign national.
The UN further says that 10,000 pregnant women in Gaza are displaced, while 373,000 children require psycho-social support. 65,000 displaced people have had their homes destroyed or damaged beyond repair.
The Israel Defense Forces said that rocket fire from Gaza continued on Saturday, with four hitting southern Israel. Concerns have now grown on the number of casualties of civilians as both sides refuse to cease fire.
"Hamas' decision to resume rocket fire will not only put the people of Israel and of Gaza at great risk, it will do nothing to meet the expectations of the Palestinian people," Earnest told reporters, adding that the US hoped both parties would agree "to an extension of the ceasefire in the coming hours and ultimately conclude an agreement to cement a sustainable ceasefire".
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has also expressed his concerns on the resumption of the violence in the region, saying that the death of civilians were "intolerable".
According to Hamas, the violence has renewed as a result of Israel's refusal to meet its demand of lifting the blockade on Gaza and the freeing of about 100 prisoners. The group also has rejected Israel's call for the demilitarisation of Gaza.
