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Olmert: Israeli Army Has 'Free Hand' to Attack Militants in Gaza Strip
Sunday, February 17, 2008
SDEROT, Israel - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Sunday gave his
military a "free hand" to hit Gaza militants after a rocket slammed into a
house in an Israeli town following a visit there by the new U.N.
humanitarian chief, who called for an end to the daily salvos.
Speaking in Jerusalem at a gathering of the Conference of Presidents of
Major American Jewish Organizations, Olmert said he would not allow a
humanitarian crisis to develop in Gaza, but the people of Gaza could not
live normal lives while Israelis across the border were constantly targeted
by rockets.
Olmert said Israel's military has a "free hand" to hit Gaza militants. "We
will reach out for anyone involved in perpetrating terrorism against
Israelis, and we will not hesitate to attack them in order to stop them," he
said. "That applies to everyone, first and foremost Hamas. Hamas is in
charge of Gaza."
Early Sunday Israeli ground forces entered Gaza, backed by aircraft. In
clashes, three Palestinian militants and a civilian were killed, and an
Israeli soldier was seriously wounded. Palestinian health officials said
more than 20 people were wounded, including several gunmen and a 45-year-old
civilian who was shot in the head.
The military said the target was the Gaza "terror infrastructure," and more
than 80 Palestinians were taken for questioning.
John Holmes, the U.N. undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs, had
just left Sderot, where he made an appeal for an end to the rocket fire from
Gaza, when a rocket exploded in a house there.
No one was seriously hurt. Medics helped a shell-shocked woman from the
house and took her for treatment.
Battered by rockets almost every day, Sderot is an inviting target, a town
of 20,000 less than a kilometer (half a mile) from the Gaza fence. Twelve
people have been killed in recent years and dozens wounded, including an
8-year-old boy who lost a leg in an attack last week.
"We condemn absolutely the firing of these rockets. There's no justification
for it. They are indiscriminate, there's no military target," Holmes told
The Associated Press during his visit to Sderot.
Israeli airstrikes and ground incursions into Gaza have killed dozens of
militants in recent months but have failed to stop the rockets. Israeli
leaders have warned that a broad ground operation is increasingly likely.
Holmes countered that Israel and the Palestinians must make peace.
"At the end of the day, the only thing that will make a lasting difference
is a peace settlement," he said. "You can't stop these problems militarily.
They have to be solved through negotiations."
Israel is trying to negotiate a peace agreement with the moderate West
Bank-based government of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Sunday that Abbas would meet Tuesday
with Olmert. The two have had regular meetings, but no progress has been
reported.
In his address Sunday, Olmert said Abbas agreed that the issue of Jerusalem
would be the last item on the agenda. "We will not start negotiations with
the most sensitive issue that could end negotiations before we start," he
said.
The two sides relaunched talks in November at a Mideast conference hosted by
U.S. President George W. Bush, setting a December 2008 target for reaching a
final accord.
In his address, Olmert said one possibility is signing a declaration of
principles, but insisted a peace accord cannot be implemented unless "terror
is stopped completely from Gaza."
"I hope the negotiating part of the basic principles can still be achieved
in 2008," he said. He said waiting longer would encourage more radical
elements among the Palestinians, especially Hamas.
"I will not hesitate to make every painful compromise that is needed to
bring true and genuine peace," he said, while refusing to compromise on
Israeli security.
He said the current Palestinian leadership is committed to peace with Israel
"like no Palestinian leadership before," warning that if the effort fails,
no future Palestinian regime would be as willing to make peace.
During Sunday's tour of Sderot, Holmes met with residents affected by the
incessant rocket salvos.
Holmes nodded quietly as residents, some in tears, told their stories. A man
lifted his shirt and showed Holmes a shrapnel wound on his belly. A woman
told him she lost a fetus after going into shock when a rocket landed near
her. The woman added that a teenage daughter of hers tried to slash her
wrists after one rocket attack.
Also visiting Israel on Sunday was French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner,
who called on Israel and Hamas to negotiate a truce. "Hamas must stop
firing, targeting (rockets) at Israel, and the Israeli people must answer,"
he told The Jerusalem Post daily.
Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai rejected talks with Hamas, saying it
was a terror group that does not recognize Israel's right to exist. "For
now, there is nothing to talk about," he told Army Radio.
Olmert: Israeli Army Has 'Free Hand' to Attack Militants in Gaza Strip
Sunday, February 17, 2008
SDEROT, Israel - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Sunday gave his
military a "free hand" to hit Gaza militants after a rocket slammed into a
house in an Israeli town following a visit there by the new U.N.
humanitarian chief, who called for an end to the daily salvos.
Speaking in Jerusalem at a gathering of the Conference of Presidents of
Major American Jewish Organizations, Olmert said he would not allow a
humanitarian crisis to develop in Gaza, but the people of Gaza could not
live normal lives while Israelis across the border were constantly targeted
by rockets.
Olmert said Israel's military has a "free hand" to hit Gaza militants. "We
will reach out for anyone involved in perpetrating terrorism against
Israelis, and we will not hesitate to attack them in order to stop them," he
said. "That applies to everyone, first and foremost Hamas. Hamas is in
charge of Gaza."
Early Sunday Israeli ground forces entered Gaza, backed by aircraft. In
clashes, three Palestinian militants and a civilian were killed, and an
Israeli soldier was seriously wounded. Palestinian health officials said
more than 20 people were wounded, including several gunmen and a 45-year-old
civilian who was shot in the head.
The military said the target was the Gaza "terror infrastructure," and more
than 80 Palestinians were taken for questioning.
John Holmes, the U.N. undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs, had
just left Sderot, where he made an appeal for an end to the rocket fire from
Gaza, when a rocket exploded in a house there.
No one was seriously hurt. Medics helped a shell-shocked woman from the
house and took her for treatment.
Battered by rockets almost every day, Sderot is an inviting target, a town
of 20,000 less than a kilometer (half a mile) from the Gaza fence. Twelve
people have been killed in recent years and dozens wounded, including an
8-year-old boy who lost a leg in an attack last week.
"We condemn absolutely the firing of these rockets. There's no justification
for it. They are indiscriminate, there's no military target," Holmes told
The Associated Press during his visit to Sderot.
Israeli airstrikes and ground incursions into Gaza have killed dozens of
militants in recent months but have failed to stop the rockets. Israeli
leaders have warned that a broad ground operation is increasingly likely.
Holmes countered that Israel and the Palestinians must make peace.
"At the end of the day, the only thing that will make a lasting difference
is a peace settlement," he said. "You can't stop these problems militarily.
They have to be solved through negotiations."
Israel is trying to negotiate a peace agreement with the moderate West
Bank-based government of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Sunday that Abbas would meet Tuesday
with Olmert. The two have had regular meetings, but no progress has been
reported.
In his address Sunday, Olmert said Abbas agreed that the issue of Jerusalem
would be the last item on the agenda. "We will not start negotiations with
the most sensitive issue that could end negotiations before we start," he
said.
The two sides relaunched talks in November at a Mideast conference hosted by
U.S. President George W. Bush, setting a December 2008 target for reaching a
final accord.
In his address, Olmert said one possibility is signing a declaration of
principles, but insisted a peace accord cannot be implemented unless "terror
is stopped completely from Gaza."
"I hope the negotiating part of the basic principles can still be achieved
in 2008," he said. He said waiting longer would encourage more radical
elements among the Palestinians, especially Hamas.
"I will not hesitate to make every painful compromise that is needed to
bring true and genuine peace," he said, while refusing to compromise on
Israeli security.
He said the current Palestinian leadership is committed to peace with Israel
"like no Palestinian leadership before," warning that if the effort fails,
no future Palestinian regime would be as willing to make peace.
During Sunday's tour of Sderot, Holmes met with residents affected by the
incessant rocket salvos.
Holmes nodded quietly as residents, some in tears, told their stories. A man
lifted his shirt and showed Holmes a shrapnel wound on his belly. A woman
told him she lost a fetus after going into shock when a rocket landed near
her. The woman added that a teenage daughter of hers tried to slash her
wrists after one rocket attack.
Also visiting Israel on Sunday was French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner,
who called on Israel and Hamas to negotiate a truce. "Hamas must stop
firing, targeting (rockets) at Israel, and the Israeli people must answer,"
he told The Jerusalem Post daily.
Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai rejected talks with Hamas, saying it
was a terror group that does not recognize Israel's right to exist. "For
now, there is nothing to talk about," he told Army Radio.
