Olmert: We're prepared for any scenario

PM: Gaza border breach a "far-fetched" possibility; Israel won't be deterred from fighting terrorism.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
soldiers paint 224 88 (photo credit: AP)
soldiers paint 224 88
(photo credit: AP)
The possibility that a Palestinian mob will storm the border of the Gaza Strip with Israel like it did in Rafah is of low probability, but Israel is prepared to deal with any situation that arises as Palestinians prepare to form a "human chain" along the border with Israel on Monday morning, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said early Monday when he landed in Tokyo. "I'm not aware of such a warning," he said. "But in the Middle East every far-fetched scenario must be taken into account and provided with a good solution. We take scenarios into account even if they are low probability." The prime minister responded to reports of mounting pressure on Israel to end the blockade of the Strip and cease military operations there. "I have not received any specific message from the United States regarding the Gaza issue," he said. "We will strike where it is necessary and we will strike anyone we need to in order to stop the Kassam rockets. We will not accept moral preaching in this matter from anyone. The information is known to all; the extent of the shooting. We don't need to apologize to anyone." Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilna'i said the army would adopt similar tactics to those it used during the first intifada. "I was there more than once, facing tens of thousands of people, and we will know how to deal with it," Vilna'i told Israel Radio. "As soon as you are prepared and ready and there is no element of surprise I presume that the result is pretty clear. We have no intention to muck around with this issue; we will employ all of the means at our disposal in order to prevent a breach of Israeli sovereign territory." Vilna'i expressed hope that "the Hamas regime, which is bringing a holocaust on its Gaza countrymen, will ultimately understand what it can and cannot do. Clearly they are trapped in their insane ideology that calls for the eradication of the state of Israel by force. They know that this is unfeasible; they know that they can't do it." On Sunday, a joint statement issued by the Foreign and Defense ministries blamed Hamas for fanning the flames and endangering Gazan civilians.