Israel resumes Gaza offensive

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) made the announcement in a statement released via the microblogging website Twitter on Sunday.

"Due to Hamas' incessant rocket fire during the humanitarian window, we are renewing our aerial, naval and ground activity in Gaza," the statement said.

Hamas had in fact continued firing rockets at the Jewish state despite the Israeli government's announcement late on Saturday that it was extending a ceasefire by a period of 24 hours, until midnight local time on Sunday (2100 UTC).

Earlier, on Sunday, sirens warning of militant rocket attacks were heard in southern and central Israel.

The IDF later announced via Twitter that the country's Iron Dome missile defense system had intercepted two rockets, while five others had hit the south of the country.

Israeli soldier killed

The military also announced that another one of its soldiers had been killed near the Gaza Strip.

"The soldier was killed by a shell that was fired from the Gaza Strip at Israeli territory," an army spokeswoman told the AFP news agency.

That brought to 43 the total number of Israeli soldiers killed since Israel launched what was initially strictly an air offensive on July 8.

The vast majority of casualties, however, have come on the Palestinian side, with at least 1,049 people in Gaza confirmed dead since the operation began, most of whom were civilians. The death toll had risen dramatically during Saturday's ceasefire, as it provided the opportunity to search for bodies and pull them from the rubble.

UN requests ceasefire extension

The IDF had largely held their fire for several hours on Sunday, after Israel agreed to a request from the UN's top official in Jerusalem, Robert Serry, to extend Saturday's ceasefire.

"At the request of the United Nations, the Cabinet has approved a humanitarian hiatus until tomorrow at 2400," an unnamed official said in a statement after a meeting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Security Cabinet late on Saturday. The statement added though, that the IDF would retaliate against any militant rocket fire.

Hamas, though, rejected the terms of the truce, as it allowed Israel to continue to destroy tunnels used by militants, and IDF soldiers remained inside the Palestinian territory.

Diplomatic efforts continue

Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts to reach a more lasting end to the bloodshed continued on Saturday, with US Secretary of State John Kerry meeting in Paris with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, Germany's Frank-Walter Steinmeier, as well as their colleagues from Italy, Britain, Turkey and Qatar.

pfd/tj (AFP, Reuters, dpa, AP)