Gaza rocket attacks will stop
2008-03-05 21:10
Jerusalem - Israeli forces will not
attack the Gaza Strip if Hamas and other Palestinian militant
groups halt their cross-border rocket salvoes, Prime Minister
Ehud Olmert said on Wednesday.
Speaking after his security cabinet authorised a campaign to
stop rocket attacks from Gaza and undermine the territory's
Islamist Hamas rulers, Olmert signalled a willingness by Israel
to hold its fire.
"One thing should be clear: If there is no Qassam (rocket)
fire on Israel, there will be no Israeli attack on Gaza. We do
not rise in the morning and think about how to attack Gaza,"
Olmert told reporters.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice held talks with
Israel and the Palestinians on Wednesday to try to restart peace
talks suspended amid Arab ire at a bloody Israeli ground
offensive in Gaza.
- Reuters