As diplomatic efforts to end the Gaza bloodshed gain pace, Israel may have managed to weaken Hamas' firepower, but it is far from achieving a full demilitarization of the Palestinian enclave, experts say.

After 17 days of an unrelenting offensive against Hamas in Gaza, Israel is facing a race against time to complete their stated mission of destroying the tunnels which allow Hamas fighters to reach Israeli territory.

Pakistan on Thursday called for an immediate end to the blockade of Gaza to allow humanitarian relief to reach Palestinians as the death toll in the besieged territory rose to more than 740.

The appeal came a day after Pakistan voted along with other U.N. Human Rights Council members to launch a probe into Israel's offensive in the territory, with rights chief Navi Pillay saying Israel's military actions could amount to war crimes.

President Francois Hollande announced on Thursday an 11-million-euro ($14.8 million) aid package to the besieged Gaza Strip, where an Israeli military offensive has left more than 700 people dead.

An advisor to Hollande said the humanitarian aid, eight million of which will be given to the Palestinian Authority and the remainder to U.N. bodies and NGOs working in Gaza, was approved after a meeting with non-governmental organizations working in the strife-torn region.

U.N. humanitarian chief Valerie Amos expressed deep concern Thursday about the mounting civilian casualties in Gaza, warning that it was "almost impossible" for Palestinians to shelter from Israeli airstrikes.

Thailand on Thursday urged Israel to relocate 4,000 Thai nationals working near the battle-scarred Gaza strip after one of its citizens was killed.

Israeli police said a farm laborer, Narakorn Kittiyongkul, died on Wednesday when a projectile fired from Gaza struck the greenhouse where he was working in the southern part of the country.

Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil made a series of contacts with Lebanon's ambassadors to the United Nations, Switzerland, and Belgium in order to condemn the Israeli campaign against the Gaza Strip, reported As Safir newspaper on Thursday.

The minister is seeking the preparation of a legal study that will be sent to the concerned international bodies to condemn Israel for its crimes in Gaza, explained the daily.

Iranian Foreign Minister for Arab and Foreign Affairs Hussein Amir Abdul Lahyan is scheduled to arrive in Beirut on Thursday for talks with various officials, reported As Safir newspaper on Thursday.

It said that his talks will focus on regional affairs, most notably the Israeli campaign against the Gaza Strip.

Thousands of Palestinians have fled their homes but have nowhere safe to shelter from Israeli airstrikes, charity Oxfam said on Wednesday, warning supplies of water and food are dangerously low.

Over 120,000 people are displaced but are prevented from escaping violence because borders with Israel and Egypt are shut, Oxfam said.

At least 687 Palestinians have been killed as Israel continued bombarding Gaza for the sixteenth day in a row, while fighting between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants was briefly suspended Wednesday in several flashpoint areas of the Strip to allow convoys of ambulances to retrieve the wounded.

Amid the ongoing violence, Hamas rejected a ceasefire to end 16 days of deadly fighting unless the blockade on the Gaza Strip is lifted, its chief Khaled Meshaal said in Doha.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday renewed its ban on American flights to Tel Aviv for another 24 hours, citing the "potentially hazardous situation" in Israel and Gaza.

It first imposed the ban on Tuesday, then renewed it at 1615 GMT with a Notice to Airmen, or NOTAM, that it said would be updated "within 24 hours."