The Palestinian death toll in an Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip jumped to more than 500 on Monday, as the United States, alarmed by escalating civilian bloodshed, took a direct role in efforts to secure a ceasefire.



The Islamist group Hamas, which inflicted the biggest single loss on Israeli forces in eight years when it killed 13 soldiers in Gaza on Sunday, said it would not lay down its arms until a series of demands were met -- including an end to a blockade imposed on the territory by both Israel and Egypt.



Israel says 18 of its soldiers have also died along with two civilians.



Hamas announced late on Sunday it had captured an Israeli soldier in Gaza, displaying a photo ID card and serial number, but no image of the man in its hands.



Looking to take the fight onto Israeli soil, two groups of Palestinian fighters, dressed as Israeli soldiers, crossed from Gaza via a secret tunnel in the early morning, firing a rocket-propelled grenade at a military jeep.

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