Stay connected to RTÉ for coverage of the war in Gaza
Correspondent Tony Connelly is on the ground with up-to-date reports
Watch a UN briefing on Gaza at 5pm on RTÉ.ie/Live
Current death toll since Saturday:
Palestinians 393 (at least)
Israelis 4 (3 civilians, 1 soldier)
Source: Medical officials and UN
The UN Security Council was to meet tonight for consultations behind closed doors on the situation in Gaza.
The talks will take place ‘with a view to a formal meeting’ which would not be closed discussion, a UN spokesman said.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said after a meeting of his security cabinet that the current conditions were not right for a Gaza ceasefire but he did not rule one out in the future.
'If conditions will ripen, and we think there can be a diplomatic solution that will ensure a better security reality in the south, we will consider it. But at the moment, it's not there,' Mr Olmert was quoted by an aide as saying.
Elsewhere, Hamas has said it is prepared to study proposals for a ceasefire that would require Israel to halt attacks and lift its blockade.
France had proposed a 48-hour truce that would allow in more humanitarian aid for Gaza's 1.5m residents.
Yesterday a ship delivering supplies from Cyprus, which included Mayo electrician Derek Graham, was blocked by an Israel naval vessel (listen to Derek's exclusive interview with RTÉ about the incident).
Responding to the French truce proposal earlier, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said: 'That proposal contained no guarantees of any kind that Hamas will stop the rockets and smuggling.'
'It is not realistic to expect Israel to cease fire unilaterally with no mechanism to enforce the cessation of shooting and terror from Hamas.'
The French proposal arose from a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Paris yesterday, which was attended by Micheál Martin.
On RTÉ Radio One's Morning Ireland, Mr Martin said the Israeli offensive was likely to harden Palestinian attitudes.
US President George Bush has said he believes Hamas needs to stop firing rockets at Israel as a first step to a ceasefire and has spoken to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
During the phone call with Olmert, Bush received assurances from the Israeli leader that Israel was only targeting Hamas and working to minimize civilian casualties.
The two did not discuss a timetable for halting Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.
Deep Targets for Hamas Rockets
Hamas militants have fired two rockets deep into Israel, both hitting near the desert city of Beersheva some 40km from the border of Gaza.
The Grad-type rockets caused no injuries or damage, the Israeli media said.
In Gaza City, the armed wing of Hamas claimed responsibility for the attacks, which mark the farthest yet that the militants' rockets have reached.
Another rocket fell near the town of Netivot, about 10km from Gaza but caused no injuries, said the Maguen David Adom, the Israeli equivalent of the Red Cross.
A rocket fired from Gaza late last night slammed into an empty field in Beersheva, again without causing damage or casualties.
Gaza militants have been firing deeper into Israel in recent days and a spokesman for the armed wing of Hamas vowed yesterday rockets would be fired even further if Israel does not halt its bombardment of the Palestinian territory.
The militants have recently acquired military-grade projectiles with a longer range than the so-called Qassam rockets they manufacture themselves.
Israel has conducted a massive bombing campaign of Hamas targets in its Gaza Strip stronghold since Saturday in an onslaught which has so far killed at least 393 Palestinians.
The offensive has failed to stop the group from firing projectiles into Israel, where three civilians and one soldier have been killed and several dozen people have been injured in rocket fire since Saturday, according to medics.
