An Israeli soldier stands at a staging area after crossing back into Israel from Gaza
An Israeli soldier stands at a staging area after crossing back into Israel from Gaza July 28, 2014. Israel eased its assaults in the Gaza Strip and Palestinian rocket fire from the enclave declined sharply on Monday, the military said, with both the United States and United Nations calling for a durable ceasefire. Reuters

Israel's missile found the house of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Tuesday, July 29, after Benjamin Netanyahu's government declared an "unlimited truce."

According to Gaza's interior ministry, the missile hit the leader's house in the Gaza Strip just before dawn. Israel, on the other hand, said that there was no information on the alleged attack. A spokesperson from Israel said that the authorities were checking for further details.

The attack, according to reports, killed 11 people in Gaza living in a refugee camp in Bureij. Israeli military got involved in the fiercest attack to date during the night. Only hours back, Israel declared an "unlimited truce" on the occasion of Eid as the United Nations Security Council had appealed to both the battling sides for an immediate truce on the occasion of the biggest Muslim festival in the world. Hamas too declared a 24-hour ceasefire for Eid celebrations.

Rockets, however, kept flying to Israel from Gaza on Monday, though in much smaller number. Israeli military too struck back with artillery shelling and tanks, but the attack was comparatively less violent. Brigadier General Motti Almoz earlier told Israeli Radio that it was an "unlimited truce." Almoz, on the contrary, emphasised that the Israeli Defence Forces would fight back if Hamas got engaged in firing at Israel.

Netanyahu apparently dismissed any possibility of an immediate peace in the Palestinian enclave as he said that the country should get ready for a longer battle. According to the Israeli army, Hamas militants killed five of their soldiers when the former entered the Jewish country through a tunnel situated near the Nahal Oz community. Netanyahu's televised address indicated that only the demilitarisation of Palestine could bring in a peaceful solution.

"We will not finish the mission," the Israeli prime minister said, "We will not finish the operation without neutralising the tunnels, which have the sole purpose of destroying our citizens, killing our children."

Channel 10 in Israel conducted an opinion poll which revealed that the majority of people in Israel would like their military to continue the offensive until Hamas was disarmed.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au