Vice Premier: Reoccupying Gaza will hurt Israel more than help it

Israel is determined to do all it can to halt rocket fire from Gaza but does not plan to retake the coastal territory from which it withdrew troops in 2005, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's deputy said on Saturday.

"We need to act with all our might, but without taking steps that will hurt us more than help us - by which I mean reoccupying Gaza," Vice Premier Haim Ramon told Channel 2 television.

He said the offensive would target those involved in firing rockets and more generally the Islamist leadership: "We need to target everyone who is directly or indirectly involved in the rocket fire. To target ... Gaza's governing infrastructure."

Two Israel Defense Forces soldiers and at least 61 Palestinians were killed on Saturday in an ongoing IDF ground incursion near the northern Gaza Strip town of Jabaliya, as nearly 50 rockets struck southern Israel over the course of the day.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority on Saturday suspended peace negotiations with Israel over the incursion, after Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni vowed that the operation would continue despite the Palestinian threats to halt talks.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Saturday reiterated comments he made the day before, blamed Hamas for the escalating violence in the south, and said the Islamic movement would bear the consequences of it.

"We are not happy about civilians being hurt in Gaza," Barak said in a statementon Saturday. "Hamas and those who fire rockets at Israel are responsible and they will pay the price."

During a visit to Ashkelon on Friday, the defense minister said: "Hamas is directly responsible for the current situation and will be the one to bear the cost of our response," adding: "An Israeli response is necessary and will be carried out."

Barak called a late-night meeting of security commanders to discuss the situation, his office said in a statement on Saturday.

	Vice Premier Haim Ramon (Tess Scheflan / Jini)