VIDEO - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert metvisiting US Senators Joe Lieberman and Lindsey Graham as well as presumptive US Republican nominee for President John McCain on Wednesday. The prime minister conveyed to the American officials his impressions that the current lull in violence in the south was only temporary.
"I'm skeptical about what appears to be a temporary lull in the south. It's doubtful if it will hold," Olmert said.
Olmert met over lunch with McCain, Lieberman and Graham at his residence in Jerusalem. He said that "Israel can't continue to tolerate the Qassam fire and the fact that hundreds of thousands of citizens are under daily rocket attacks. We will eventually end the Qassam fire."
McCain told the prime minister: "I agree that from Israel's perspective the situation in the south is untenable. If they were to fire at residents of a town in Arizona, the US would respond. The residents would definitely ask for a response."
Olmert told McCain that Israel plans to act against the rocket fire from Gaza but does not intend to punish the Palestinian population. "Hamas today is armed, equipped and financed by Iran and Syria .When Israel responds to the (Qassam) fire with military actions, the world condemns it; but we have no other way to end the rocket fire," he said.
Prime Minsiter Olmert with his guests (Photo: Gil Yohanan)
Senator Joe Lieberman, who was a candidate for vice president in the past, asked Olmert if there was a way to stop the rocket fire without reoccupying the entire Gaza Strip. The prime minister answered that the way to do this "is by creating deterrence in the south that will cause (those launching rockets) to think twice before firing again."
In reference to the negotiations with the Palestinians, Olmert said that "alongside our attempts to limit the rocket fire, we're continuing to build the momentum of the political process with pragmatic elements in the Palestinian Authority and (PA President) Mahmoud Abbas ."
Iran also came up in the discussions. Olmert and the senators spoke of the US intelligence report that posited that Iran ceased its program to develop nuclear weapons in 2003. Olmert said that "the Israeli assumption is entirely different than the spirit of the report. We're convinced that Iran continues to seek out nuclear weapons with its secret military program.
Earlier Wednesday, the US senators met with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Opposition Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu .
The three US politicians arrived to Israel from Amman following a short stint in Iraq. They told the prime minister about the goings-on in Iraq and the problems that the US military is dealing with.