Vice Premier Eli Yishai slammed United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday after Ban called the death toll in IDF counterterror operations in Gaza “unbearable.” The UN chief has insisted on an immediate ceasefire, a demand that Israel has declined to fulfill.

According to Yishai, Ban was guilty of mindlessly repeating Hamas complaints. "One could accept his demands, if he would spend a few days in Sderot and not just recite the messages coming from [Hamas head in Gaza] Ismail Haniyeh,” the Shas leader said.

Yishai also rejected the call for an immediate ceasefire, saying, “We won't give in to international pressure, and a military calm will be proclaimed prior to a diplomatic initiative only if it is in Israel's interest.”

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak met with Ban Ki-moon and listened to his concerns, but said Israel would continue fighting Hamas. Barak said Israel would avoid harming Gaza civilians to the best of its abilities, and would enable the UN to continue providing services in Gaza. He warned Ban that Gaza terrorists are endangering Arab civilians by firing on IDF soldiers from UN facilities.

Livni told Ban that Israel could not agree to an immediate ceasefire, and pointed out that Hamas repeatedly violated its ceasefire with Israel in 2008. The ceasefire was used to acquire long-range missiles currently being used to attack Israeli civilians, she said.

Hamas not only attacks Israeli civilians, but is harmful to Arab civilians in Gaza as well, she said. The group is an obstacle to the creation of an independent Arab state in Gaza, Livni explained.