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Israel: UN truce call unworkable

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Friday dismissed a UN resolution saying it was "unworkable".

  • Agencies
  • Published: 17:19 January 9, 2009
  • Gulf News

  • Image Credit: AP
  • Fighting in Gaza blazed on as Israel dismissed the UN truce call as unworkable.

Occuppied Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert rejected on Friday a UN resolution calling for a Gaza ceasefire, saying it was "unworkable".

Noting Palestinians had fired rockets at Israel again, he said the army would continue defending Israelis.

Israel says its two-week-old offensive on the Gaza Strip is aimed at stopping rockets landing on its towns from Gaza, which is controlled by Islamist group Hamas.

"Israel has never agreed that any external entity would determine its right to defend the security of its citizens. The IDF will continue to act in order to protect the citizens of Israel and will achieve the goals that were set for the operation," said a statement issued by Olmert's media adviser.

At least 14 rockets were fired on Friday, fewer than the dozens Hamas was able to launch in the early days of the war. Hamas officials said they were looking at the UN resolution.

"The firing of rockets this morning at citizens in the south, only goes to show that the UN decision is unworkable and will not be adhered to by the murderous Palestinian organisations," Olmert's statement concluded.

Olmert's security cabinet was in session on Friday afternoon to decide whether to launch an escalation of the offensive on Hamas gunmen by moving large numbers of reserve troops in a third phase deep into urban areas in Gaza.

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