A lull in violence in Gaza has been shattered by explosions that hit the compound of the territory’s main hospital and a nearby park, reportedly killing 10 people.

Meanwhile, Israeli media is reporting that four Israelis have been killed in a mortar strike near the Gaza border.

Earlier, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged an immediate halt to the violence in Gaza.

He said the Palestinian territory was in a „critical condition”.

„In the name of humanity, the violence must stop,” he told reporters.

At least 10 people – eight of them children – were killed in Monday afternoon’s Gaza City blasts, Palestinian health officials said.

Palestinian officials say the 10 were killed by Israeli missile strikes, but Israel says the explosions were caused by rockets misfired by „terrorists”.

Reports on Israeli public radio and Channel 10 television said four civilians were killed and another 10 people injured when a mortar shell hit the Eshkol regional council.

Israel launched an offensive against Hamas in Gaza three weeks ago after a surge in rocket fire.

Before Monday, more than 1,030 Palestinians, mostly civilians, and 43 Israeli soldiers and two Israeli civilians had been killed. A Thai national in Israel had also died.
Ban Ki-moon, who spoke in New York after returning from a visit to the region, was critical of both sides for firing into civilian areas.

He said Hamas had fired missiles into civilian areas of Israel, while Israeli forces had used high-explosive weapons in the crowded Gaza Strip.

Mr Ban said the people of Gaza had nowhere to run to, and he emphasised that participants in conflicts had a responsibility to protect civilians.

He reiterated the UN’s call for an immediate, unconditional humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza during the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday, which marks the end of Ramadan.

„It’s a matter of their political will. They have to show their humanity as leaders, both Israeli and Palestinian,” he said.

Later, the French presidency said the leaders of the United States, France, Germany, Italy and Britain – who held telephone talks – had „agreed to redouble their efforts to obtain a ceasefire. Pressure must increase to get there”.
There were no Israeli air strikes overnight though they resumed on Monday morning after a rocket hit the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon.

Israel’s military launched three air strikes on rocket sites after the rocket attack on Ashkelon. A boy aged four was killed in one of the strikes, Gaza’s health ministry said.

Rockets were also fired at the Sdot Negev and Eshkol districts of Israel, Israel’s Haaretz newspaper reports.

An Israeli soldier was wounded in northern Gaza where the military wing of Hamas, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said it had „clashed” with Israeli infantry.

‘Widespread support’

On Sunday night, the UN Security Council called for a „durable” truce based on an Egyptian initiative, under which a pause in hostilities would lead to substantive talks on the future of Gaza, including the opening of Gaza’s border crossings.

The Palestinian representative at the UN, Riyad Mansour, said the statement did not go far enough and that a formal resolution was needed demanding that Israel withdraw its forces from Gaza.
Israel’s ambassador Ron Prosor accused the Security Council statement of bias for not mentioning Hamas and the firing of rockets at Israel.

Opinion polls published at the weekend suggest there is still widespread support among Israelis for the military operation.

Israel launched its military offensive on 8 July with the declared objective of stopping Hamas, the Islamist group which controls Gaza, firing rockets from Gaza into Israel.

On 18 July, it extended operations with a ground offensive, saying it was necessary to destroy tunnels dug by militants to infiltrate Israel.

Source: bbc.co.uk