Olmert says won't allow humanitarian crisis in Gaza

HERZLIYA, Israel (Reuters) - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Wednesday he would not allow a humanitarian crisis to develop in the Gaza Strip but its residents could not expect to lead normal lives while rockets hit Israel.

"We will not permit, under any circumstances or conditions, a humanitarian crisis to develop," Olmert said in a policy speech, hours after tens of thousands of Gazans, challenging an Israeli blockade, forced their way into neighboring Egypt.

"We will not harm the supply of food for children, medicine for those who need it and fuel for institutions that save lives. But there is no justification for demanding we allow residents of Gaza to live normal lives while shells and rockets are fired from their streets and courtyards at Sderot and other communities in the south."

(Writing by Jeffrey Heller in Jerusalem, Editing by Dan Williams)