ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted today that the ongoing massacre committed by his forces in Gaza had soiled Israel’s reputation, but he vowed to continue the slaughter.

He told US TV programme Face the Nation on Sunday that Palestinians were using their civilians as “human shields” against Israel’s invasion of Gaza.

Mr Netanyahu said that his nation’s efforts to defend its itself would not weaken despite growing global concern about over 1,000 civilian deaths at the hands of Israel’s lethal Defence Force.

Israel was not targeting civilians, the zionist leader said, suggesting that Hamas wants non-military bodies to pile up for cameras to capture.

He demanded that Hamas be both discredited and disarmed.

Palestinian politician Mohammad Shtayyeh told Face the Nation’s sister programme State of the Union that Israeli aggression would not bring peace to the region.

Mr Shtayyeh, who is a member of the Palestinian Economic Council for Research and Development, pointed out that people under siege will react to defend themselves and that this is what was happening in Gaza.

He added that the only answer was for Israel to accommodate Palestinian demands for ending the occupation and for establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

Hamas announced a 24-hour humanitarian truce yesterday to herald the Eid al-Fitr holiday that marks the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

It had previously rejected a ceasefire call from Israel.

However, Israeli army spokesman Lt Col Peter Lerner made clear that the proposal was simply to ensure a safer environment for troops to continue demolishing Gaza’s network of defensive tunnels.

Both sides launched new attacks after the truce calls, each blaming the other for the breakdown.

Hamas said it had resumed its fire “due to the lack of commitment” by Israel.

Mr Netanyahu said: “Israel is not obliged and is not going to let a terrorist organisation decide when it’s convenient to fire at our cities, at our people, and when it’s not.”

The 20-day war has killed more than 1,060 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to Palestinian health officials.

Israel has lost 43 soldiers, while two Israeli civilians and a Thai migrant worker were killed by attacks from Gaza.