Israel bombs house of top Hamas adviser

An Israeli plane has bombed the vacated house of a top adviser to Hamas's prime minister, according to local residents in Gaza.

It came after a bus bombing injured 15 people in Israel's commercial capital, Tel Aviv.

In an eight-day-old bombing campaign, Israel has hit numerous government buildings operated by Hamas, and has also targeted countless militants.

But it had previously spared Hamas's political hierarchy, locals said.

An Israeli warplane first fired a warning missile towards the house of Essam al-Daalees, who works closely with Gaza Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh.

Shortly afterwards it scored a direct hit on the building, in the Nusseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, flattening the property.

Medics reported that one passerby was wounded, adding that the house had been evacuated earlier.

Israel said it launched the offensive to halt repeated rocket attacks out of the coastal enclave. Some 139 Palestinians have died in the violence, more than half of them civilians, while four Israel civilians and one soldier have also died.

Earlier, an explosion has hit a public bus in the heart of Tel Aviv in Israel, injuring at least ten people.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the explosion was a terrorist attack. The blast shattered windows on the bus, which was driving on a street that runs alongside Israel's defence headquarters.

Three of the wounded were listed in a serious condition.

The attack happened on the eighth day of an Israeli offensive against Hamas militants in Gaza.

Celebratory gunfire rang out in Gaza when local radio stations reported news of the Tel Aviv explosion.

A Hamas spokesman praised the bombing, but stopped short of claiming responsibility.

The last time Israel's commercial capital was hit by a serious bomb blast was in April 2006, when a Palestinian suicide bomber killed 11 people at a sandwich stand near the city's old central bus station.

Ceasefire efforts

Meanwhile, Israeli air strikes targeted Gaza and Hamas rockets struck across the border overnight as US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton held talks in Jerusalem, seeking a ceasefire in the conflict.

Egypt is mediating truce talks and had floated hopes for a ceasefire by late last night.

After talks in Ramallah with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and a possible second meeting with Mr Netanyahu, whom she saw late last night, Mrs Clinton planned to fly to Egypt

Hamas leaders in Cairo accused Israel of failing to respond to proposals and said an announcement on holding fire would not come before daylight.

Israel Radio quoted an Israeli official saying a truce was held up due to "a last-minute delay in the understandings between Hamas and Israel".

An initial halt to attacks may, however, not see the sides stand their forces down immediately.

Mrs Clinton, who flies to Cairo to see Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi later today, spoke of a deal "in the days ahead".

As she arrived in Israel after nightfall, Israel was stepping up its bombardment from air and sea. At one point munitions were fired into Gaza at a rate of one every ten minutes.

Gazan rocket fire waned overnight but resumed before dawn with six launches, Israel said. No one was hurt.

Over the past week over 130 Palestinians and five Israelis have been killed.

Both sides are looking for more than a return to the sporadic calm that has prevailed across Gaza since Israel ended an air and ground offensive four years ago.

Mr Netanyahu told Mrs Clinton he wanted a "long-term" solution.

Failing that, Mr Netanyahu made clear, he stood ready to step up the military campaign to silence Hamas' rockets.

Mrs Clinton assured Mr Netanyahu of "rock-solid" US support for Israel's security, spoke of seeking a "durable outcome" and of Egypt's "responsibility" for promoting peace.

"In the days ahead, the United States will work with our partners here in Israel and across the region toward an outcome that bolsters security for the people of Israel, improves conditions for the people of Gaza and moves toward a comprehensive peace for all people of the region," Mrs Clinton said.

"It is essential to de-escalate the situation in Gaza. The rocket attacks from terrorist organisations inside Gaza on Israeli cities and towns must end and a broader calm restored," she said.

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