Prime Minister Ehud Olmert visited Beersheva this morning and met with approximately 30 local council heads from the south, whose councils are under missile threat.
Earlier today, a Hamas-fired rocket hit a house in Ashdod, and a rocket landed in Beersheva. Several other rockets fired from Gaza landed in the Eshkol regional council area in the south.
The Prime Minister was accompanied by Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai, National Emergency Authority Director Zeev Tzuk-Ram, National Emergency Board (NEB) Director Avi Becher, and government and military officials.
Prime Minister Olmert toured the Beersheva control center, which is staffed by municipal employees, along with NEB and Home Front Command representatives. The council heads briefed the Prime Minister on their deployment for events, cooperation with IDF Home Front Command, and the situation in their communities and with their residents. Prime Minister Olmert said, "It was clear that we could not live in the reality which had been created. We could not countenance a situation in which hundreds of thousands of people were going to sleep and waking up in the morning in fear, distress and uncertainty. We will act so that there will be quiet in the southern communities. I very much hope that we will succeed in reaching our goals as quickly as possible. What we want is for our children to grow up in safety and that the children of Sderot, Beersheva and Ashkelon will not have to flee from the shriek of missiles. We have not declared war on the residents of Gaza. I reiterate that we will treat the population with silk gloves but will apply an iron fist to Hamas. "I already told you this on the first day we must take into account that Hamas will attempt to fire more rockets in the coming days. Your fortitude, and the steadfastness and restraint of your people, allow the Government and the IDF to make the right decisions and take steps at the proper time so that quiet will return to all of us."
More than twenty targets were attacked in Gaza since this morning, including weapons storage facilities, rocket launching sites, Hamas terror operatives, and a tunnel used by Hamas.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 1, 2009
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