Staakt het vuren vanaf donderdagochtend

Het late journaal maakte gisteren de overeenkomst over het staakt-het-vuren al bekend, maar Israël heeft deze officieel pas vandaag bevestigd. Het valt te hopen dat met het opheffen van de blokkade van Gaza en met name de opening van de grensovergang met Egypte de wapensmokkel niet zal toenemen. Opvallend was overigens dat in het nieuws in het geheel geen melding werd gemaakt van de vele aanvallen door Hamas op de grensovergangen (hun sluiting door Israël was slechts gericht op het straffen van Hamas), de aanslagen die geregeld worden verijdeld en de explosie van een huis vol bommen waar Hamas Israël de schuld van gaf, terwijl men nota bene de laatste voorbereidingen trof voor een 'quality attack'.

 

Ratna

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Last update - 21:56 18/06/2008

Olmert: Gaza cease-fire is fragile, may be short lived

 

By Amos Harel and Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondents and News Agencies 
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/993702.html

 

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday said that Israel would do its part to implement a cease-fire deal in the Gaza Strip, but warned that the truce was "fragile and likely to be short-lived."

Olmert spoke hours after Israel confirmed that it had agreed to an Egyptian-proposed cease-fire (tahadiyeh), to go into effect at 6 A.M. Thursday.

The prime minister said that Israel would "go forward in implementing this calm" but that its military was readying its response should Palestinian rocket attacks continue.

Olmert stressed that he had not and would not negotiate directly with terrorist elements, and reiterated Israel's position that Shalit's release was inherent to the truce deal.

"We have no illusions. The calm is fragile and likely to be short-lived," Olmert said. "Hamas has not changed its skin. These are bloodthirsty and despicable terrorists who even today are doing all they can to harm Israeli civilians."

"Hamas is the address in Gaza, and it carries responsibility for everything that happens in Gaza," he added.