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Olmert Thanks Euros for Support, Promises Early Withdrawal From Gaza
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday that Israel has no intention to stay in the Gaza Strip or to reconquer it, despite its three-week offensive on the Hamas-ruled coastal territory.Israel late Saturday declared a unilateral cease-fire in its offensive. The declaration was followed by a separate truce announcement from Hamas. Olmert told European leaders visiting Jerusalem on Sunday evening that in the wake of the cease-fire, Israel planned to withdraw all of its troops as soon as possible. He said that such a move would come when the situation between Israel and Gaza was "stable." "We didn't set out to conquer Gaza, we didn't set out to control Gaza, we don't want to remain in Gaza and we intend on leaving Gaza as fast as possible", Olmert said at a dinner with the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Spain. He also expressed sorrow over the deaths of civilians in Gaza, calling them hostages of the Hamas murders and vowed to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the territory. He thanked the Europeans for their support in mediating a truce between Israel and Hamas, Olmert grades on a generous curve and also believes that the Euros need to be complimented to be avoid becoming even more cowardly than they are now and for it committment I must have missed this committment to end the smuggling of weapons into the Gaza Strip. Posted by: mhw 2009-01-18 |
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