Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will continue its campaign against Gaza “as long as necessary,” despite the fact that a recent air strike killed a 12-year-old boy in a refugee camp, bringing the Palestinian death toll to 17.

­“We extracted a high price from them and will continue to do so. We will act as long as necessary," Netanyahu told the government on Sunday, as quoted by Agence France Presse.

Earlier, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said he expected the violence to carry on for "another day or two." He added a ground operation is “not desirable” at the moment, but other Israeli ministers show no unanimity on that issue.

Clashes between Israel and Gaza militants erupted on Friday, when Israeli air forces killed two senior members of the Popular Resistance Committees: the secretary-general Zuhair al-Qaisi and Mahmoud Hannani.