MID: Israel to hit Hamas with 'iron fist' if rockets continue
13 Jan 2009 3:12 AM
JERUSALEM, Jan 12 AFP - Israel will hit Hamas with an "iron fist" if the Islamist movement does not halt its rocket fire against the Jewish state, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert warned on Monday.
"We want to end the operation when the two conditions we have demanded are met: ending the rocket fire and stopping Hamas's rearmament. If these two conditions are met, we will end our operation in Gaza," Olmert said in a speech in the southern town of Ashkelon.
"Anything else will meet the iron fist of the Israeli people, who are no longer ready to tolerate the Qassams (rockets)."
"Will it take time? Let it take time. We will continue as long as necessary in order to remove this threat," the premier added.
Israel launched a massive operation against the Hamas-ruled territory on December 27 with the declared goal of halting the near-daily rocket fire from Gaza against southern Israel, which has killed four people since the start of the offensive.
Israel has conditioned the end of the operation, which has claimed the lives of more than 900 Palestinians, on a complete halt to rocket fire and arms smuggling from Egypt into Gaza.
Ashkelon, a port city situated around a dozen kilometres from Gaza, has been hit by dozens of Qassams since the start of the offensive.
