Olmert: The sooner Israel can end Gaza op, the better

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told Haaretz on Tuesday that Israel has no interest in a prolonged offensive in the Gaza Strip.

"The sooner, the better," he said when asked when the army planned to end its operation. "We did not set out to occupy Gaza or kill every terrorist. We set out to bring change to the south."

Olmert on Tuesday visited a number of southern towns recently battered by rockets, and met with residents, municipal leaders, and wounded Israel Defense Forces soldiers hospitalized at Soroka Medical Center, in Be'er Sheva.

The prime minister told Haaretz that he was in contact with numerous world leaders working toward a diplomatic solution for the crisis, but explained that Israel was demanding "an effective blockading of the Philadelphi Route, with supervision and follow-ups," referring to the area between Gaza and Egypt where Islamic militants have dug tunnels that are used for smuggling weapons and passage of guerillas.

Earlier Tuesday, Olmert rejected the European Union's request for a 48-hour "humanitarian" cease-fire with Hamas. The prime minister told the group of visiting European foreign ministers that Israel was "tired of gestures."

"We honored the cease-fire despite being fired at on a daily basis," Olmert said. "Now is the time for action. We are ready for a cease-fire only in exchange for actions, not empty words."

Meanwhile, President Shimon Peres told senior European Union politicians during their talks Tuesday that their nations should support Israel in its Gaza offensive.

Europeans, said Peres, "must understand that Hamas is a terror organization of the worst order that uses its population of women and children as human shields."