Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has no intention of halting Israel's aerial offensive against Palestinian terror groups in the Gaza Strip despite calls by President Mahmoud Abbas for a ceasefire, Olmert aides said Thursday.
"Israel will continue to operate against Hamas' terror. They will not control the situation, we will control the situation. We still haven't exhausted most of the targets that have been approved by the security cabinet," one aide added.
Israel will step up attacks against Hamas over the next ten days for fear that world powers meeting at the G8 summit in Berlin next week will press it to end its latest assault on the Islamic group.
"They (Hamas) need to understand that the price tag for attacking Israeli towns like Sderot is very high and unworthy," one minister said.
Israel launched a massive aerial offensive against Palestinian terror groups in the wake of heightened rocket attacks against communities near the border with the Gaza Strip.