The U.N. Human Rights Council on Wednesday launched a probe into the Gaza offensive, backing calls by the Palestinians to hold Israel to account despite fierce opposition from the Jewish state.

The decision came after a marathon seven-hour emergency session of the top U.N. human rights body, where the Israelis and the Palestinians traded accusations over war crimes.

Hamas said Wednesday that the suspension of international flights to and from Israel over security concerns about Gaza rocket fire was a "great victory."

"The success of Hamas in closing Israeli airspace is a great victory for the resistance, and is the crown of Israel's failure," Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said in a statement.

The March 14 forces on Wednesday noted that the roadmap proposed by al-Mustaqbal movement leader MP Saad Hariri is “the most suitable” for Lebanon's endurance in the face of the current developments, stressing that the election of a new president has become “more than necessary.”

“In the face of the rapid developments in the region, from the battered Gaza that is standing tall against the Israeli killing machine to Iraq that is reeling under the hammers of terrorism and dictatorship, not to mention Syria, the (March 14) General Secretariat underlines that the election of a new president according to the Constitution and the Lebanese political system's mechanisms has become more than necessary to foil the impending threats,” it said.

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat on Wednesday lashed out at the rulers of Arab countries and their stance on the relentless Israeli assault against the Gaza Strip, noting that “the human remains of martyrs will fire back at them all.”

Jumblat also blasted the stances of Russia, the United States, Germany, Iran and France.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged the country's Jewish community Wednesday her unwavering support as she condemned anti-Semitic slurs and threats at pro-Palestinian demonstrations, a government spokesman said.

The spokesman, Georg Streiter, said Germany would not tolerate aggression against the resurgent Jewish population, after protests against the Israeli offensive in Gaza where violent slogans were used.

Washington's top diplomat said global efforts to end 16 days of bloodshed in Gaza were progressing Wednesday as the fighting raged on and airlines kept flights suspended over rocket fears.

As U.S. and U.N. diplomats continued intensive diplomacy, the Islamist Hamas movement rejected any truce without the lifting of Israel's eight-year blockade on Gaza.

National carrier Royal Jordanian said on Wednesday it has suspended flights to Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion international airport after a Gaza rocket struck near runways.

The announcement by the airline, which operates 20 weekly flights to Tel Aviv, was made in a short statement carried by state-run Petra news agency.

Several thousands Wednesday held a fresh protest in Paris against the Israeli offensive in Gaza amid tight security days after similar rallies descended into violence and looting.

Police said the rally gathered about 14,500 people, while organizers put the figure at 25,000.

Airlines blocked flights to Israel Wednesday after a Gaza rocket struck near airport runways, as the U.N. chief urged an end to a conflict that has killed 639 Palestinians and 31 Israelis.

As the violence entered its 16th day, neither Israel nor Islamist movement Hamas appeared willing to end hostilities, despite days of diplomatic efforts to coax them into a truce.

Two dozen European doctors who had previously worked in Gaza expressed their dismay in a leading medical journal Tuesday at the plight of the wounded and ill in the conflict.

"Wounded and sick people cannot leave easily to get specialized treatment outside Gaza. Entries of food and medicines into Gaza have been restricted and many essential items for survival are prohibited," the group of 20 doctors from Italy, Britain and Norway wrote in The Lancet.