JERUSALEM, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert decided on Thursday to adhere to the policy of restraint in face of continued Qassam rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip, the Jerusalem Post said.

    Olmert made the decision at the Israel Defense Forces Central Headquarters in Tel Aviv, where he consulted with Defense Minister Amir Peretz and leaders of the security establishment and heard suggestions over altering the restraint policy due to the ongoing rocket fire.

    Olmert rejected Peretz's proposal, which called for Israel's response to breaches of a ceasefire with Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip.

    However, the Prime Minister's Office said that Olmert's advisors had told officials from Palestinian National Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas's Office that the restraint would not continue for much longer.

    "Abu Mazen (Abbas) is aware of violations of the ceasefire and of the depth of the problem and that eventually we will have to act," said a statement from the Prime Minister's Office, adding that Israel wanted to give Abbas a chance to use his power to stop rocket attacks.

    Meanwhile, Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip on Thursday fired at least four Qassam rockets at Israel, one of which struck the yard of a community center in the western Negev town of Sderot. The strike shattered some windows on a local structure and several people were treated for shock.

    The al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad (Holy War), claimed responsibility for the attack.

    Israel and Palestinian factions officially began a ceasefire inthe Gaza Strip on Nov. 26.