Bush 'Furious' at U.S. Deaths in Jerusalem Bombing

Reuters via Yahoo! ^ | Thu Aug 1,12:41 PM ET | By Danielle Haas

[Momaw Nadon]

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - President Bush ( news - web sites) said on Thursday he was "furious" about a Palestinian bombing that killed five Americans and two Israelis in Jerusalem but he still believed peace was possible in the Middle East.

"I'm just as angry as Israel is right now," Bush told reporters in Washington before meeting Jordan's King Abdullah. "I'm furious that innocent life was lost. However, through my fury, even though I am mad, I still believe peace is possible."

Bush's remarks followed scathing condemnation by U.S. ambassador to Israel Daniel Kurtzer of Wednesday's attack, which he said marked "a new depth of depravity" for Palestinian militants waging a 22-month-old uprising against Israeli occupation.

Seven people were killed and more than 80 hurt when the lunchtime blast tore through a cafeteria at Hebrew University, one of the few places in Jerusalem where Arabs and Israelis still studied and lived peacefully together.

U.S. officials identified four of the dead as Janis Coulter, 36, Benjamin Blutstein, Marla Bennett and David Gritz. Gritz also had French citizenship. Israeli police identified the fifth American as Dina Carter, 37, who also had Israeli citizenship.

The two Israelis killed were identified as David Ladovsky, 29, who had recently joined the diplomatic corps, and Levina Shapira, a 53-year-old student counselor.

Hamas, an Islamic militant group dedicated to Israel's destruction, said it carried out the attack to avenge an Israeli air strike in Gaza last week that killed its military leader, his lieutenant and 13 others, including nine children.

The attack was the bloodiest in Israel since June 19 when a bomber killed seven Israelis at a Jerusalem bus stop, and was unusual because of the high toll of foreign victims.

It further dented hopes of an early breakthrough to end violence since Palestinians rose up against Israeli occupation in September 2000 after statehood talks deadlocked.

Asked if he supported Israeli military retaliation for the latest bomb attack, Bush said Israel had a right to defend itself "but I say to all parties involved, we must keep the vision of peace in mind."

ISRAELI SHOT DEAD

In new violence, an Israeli man was found bound and shot dead near Israel's border with the West Bank on Thursday.

The Israeli army accused Palestinian gunmen of shooting the man at close range at the Buds of Peace industrial zone near the West Bank city of Tulkarm after going there to make deliveries.

A senior Israeli security source said Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ( news - web sites) had decided in consultations with Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer to "retaliate strongly against Hamas targets for what happened."

But the government did not say exactly how it would respond to the blast, which was condemned by the Palestinian Authority ( news - web sites) and which followed a suicide attack that wounded four people in Jerusalem on Tuesday.

In Beit Jala near Bethlehem in the West Bank, witnesses said Israeli forces blew up the home of Hazim Saras, who carried out that bombing.

It was not clear whether Israeli pledges to ease the hardship of 700,000 Palestinians living under Israeli military curfew in the West Bank since mid-June would be affected.

Laying a wreath at Hebrew University a day after the blast, U.S. Ambassador Kurtzer demanded immediate action by the Palestinians and Arab states to end the violence.

"The terrorist murderers, those who sent them and those whose action and inaction contributed to this despicable act, have descended to a new depth of depravity," Kurtzer, a former student at the university, said.

CONDEMNATION BY "QUARTET"

Washington's partners in the 'Quartet' leading efforts to revive peacemaking -- Russia, the United Nations ( news - web sites) and the European Union ( news - web sites) -- also condemned the bombing.

"Terror has brought death and suffering in...a lively center of culture, of communication and of learning where students of different nationalities and ethnic origin work closely and harmoniously together, including of course Israelis and Palestinians," EU Commissioner Michel Barnier said.

At least 1,473 Palestinians and 574 Israelis have been killed in the violence, including a 63-year-old Gaza man who medical officials said died on Thursday of earlier wounds.

Suicide bombings have continued despite a six-week Israeli offensive in the West Bank launched in late March.

A U.N. report on Israel's assault on the Jenin Palestinian refugee camp during the offensive criticized all sides, saying Israel endangered civilians by using heavy weapons in heavily populated areas while 200 Palestinian fighters used the camp as a base.

The report by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan ( news - web sites) avoided the word "massacre" and dismissed Arab claims that 500 Palestinians died in Jenin during Israel's "Operation Defensive Shield."

It said there were cases when Israeli forces did not respect the neutrality of medical and humanitarian workers, and that 52 Palestinians and 23 Israeli soldiers died in Jenin over 10 days.

[sakic]

He is our CIC in a time of war. How dare you slander our leader.

Our leader's strong point seems to be vacationing.

[ghostkatz]

Well, about 3000 Americans were killed 9-11-01!! What have we REALLY done about it? The murderers are still right here in our own country!! We went and harrassed Afghanistan a little, while Israel is having innocent people blown up and our prez says "now let's play nice, Israel, let the Pallies have your country as their homeland, dont fight back" I say let Israel go!!

[caddie]

There are still al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, and everywhere else.

There are especially a lot of them in the USA, Pakistan, Ireland, and probably, all throughout the EU. They operate with impunity.

They still come into the USA as pseudo-students, or visitors, whatever, with impunity, even from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and other terrorist arab states.

Yes, the only solution to this is war, or, in your PC vocabulary, genocide, whatever you wish to call it.

If you are fighting people who are willing to self-immolate with C4 to fight their enemies, then, obviously, you are not going to stop them with anything but total war.

And not with the book reports, white papers, peace summits, bake sales, trust falls, study groups, international commissions, and other tap-dancing-type crap that you learned from your poly sci professor, as being activities that are an adequate response to the islamic decleared war we are engaged in.

This is the only way it will be solved:

Start shelling Jiddah, and then bombing, 7/24.

Then start moving on Mecca.

And don't stop.

Whenever Iraq or the other cave-man states get uppity, then you start bombing them.

I personally would avoid nukes, because it will make it harder for us to harvest oil from our newly conquered territories.

I would kill as many muslims as necessary to achieve peace.

Civilians, military, whatever.

Until we were the victors,

And the muslim oligarchy of nations unconditionally surrendered, begging for only a fraction of their people to survive.

[r9etb]

I'm sorry, but that's about the stupidest set of ideas I've ever seen.

[swarthyguy]

Where's that CRUSADER Artillery system when you really need it anyway.

BUMP for Clarity and Eyes Wide Open.

[boris]

"I'm sorry, but that's about the stupidest set of ideas I've ever seen."

I wonder what your attitude will be when Chicago vanishes in an atomic cloud, or Cleveland has 100,000 deaths due to Smallpox, or a suicide bomber blows himself up in an elementary school on U.S. soil.

Such outrages are inevitable because we lack the will to do what is necessary to prevent them.

--Boris

[ghostkatz]

AS horrific as it sounds, I agree with you. But in my story line, it is the Messiah who will destroy the evil people, not America. I think there will be a lot more terrorism before the coming of the Messiah, though.

[ghostkatz]

and yes to you, you are sooo right!!! And it will happen but by then we will not be capable of responding in an effective manner.

[caddie]

That's probably because you are some arab dude.

What I am suggesting is exactly what must be done, because, the muslims would just as soon be doing it to us, if the tables were turned.

And once a few more of them get nukes, like Iraq, then, they are gonna get started.

I think you should go to your library and read more Foreign Policy journals, and maybe sip on some sherry.

[caddie]

The Lord helps those that help themselves, dude.

[Robert_Paulson2]

Islam is peace... the cheif said so...

now just shut up and go about your business...

[ghostkatz]

that's "dudette" thank you ... one "kick a$$" dudette! Hehe

[caddie]

LOL.

[mlocher]

Get Jesse out of there before he starts a real war!!!!!

collateral damage, anyone?

[borkrules]

John Derbyshire, no dummy and certainly no closet Pat Buchanan supporter, had this to say in The Corner (NRO's chat-room):

U.S. UNDER-REACTION TO JERUSALEM MURDERS [John Derbyshire] Does anyone else think that the U.S. administration is under-reacting to the murders at Hebrew University? Five Americans were killed, in a building named after an American. Administration reaction: "'We have grieved with all the people of Israel as they have faced Palestinian terrorism,' said [U.S. Ambassador] Kurtzer, speaking in front of the Frank Sinatra International Students Center, where the blast tore apart a cafeteria a day earlier. 'Now that five American citizens have been killed, our grief is even deeper.'" [AP] Uh-huh. Perhaps we should send for Oprah? "President Bush mourned the American dead as he met Thursday with King Abdullah of Jordan on how to move the Mideast peace process forward. 'I am just as angry as Israel is. I am furious,' he said. 'But even though I am mad, I still think peace is possible,' the president said at a picture-taking session with the king at the start of a meeting in the Oval Office." [AP] Oh, that's all right then. Heaven forbid anything should stand in the way of the "peace process." What would be wrong with this?-- A clear public announcement by the administration that any person known to be associated in any way whatsoever with Hamas is a target of opportunity for U.S. troops and special services; similarly with anyone know to be friendly with or related to such; similarly ith any employee or owner of any news organization transmitting any message or announcement from Hamas, or any owner or inhabitant of any building, car or truck ever used by Hamas... These savages are laughing at us. We should put the fear of Almighty God into them. Then, we should kill them all, along with everyone known to have shaken hands with them or given them a light for a cigarette. If we don't have the guts to do this--to avenge our own slaughtered citizens--let's engage proxies to do it for us. Yes, I am mad. Are we ever going to deal with these scum, these murderers of Americans? Do we actually have any plan to do so?

[Robert_Paulson2]

He is our CIC in a time of war. How dare you slander our leader.

Bush grows more pathetic and weak in my view every day now. WHEN will we truly stand up to these pukes instead of bombing mostly empty hillsides in the desert mountains of central asia?

When hell freezes over or when we have a few more 9/11 incidents, OR when his kneejerk supporters, call him to task for his lame, limited response to what was even more heinous than pearl harbor.

We will beleive bush has taken his role seriously when terrorists and nations, NATIONS that support them, LOOK like DRESDEN. That includes their allies... in Europe. It's been a year, nearly. WE now KNOW who is for us and who is playing games... NO MORE INVITES to crawford texas for barbeques to the islamic perpetrators of all this SH!TE... tis time for these middle eastern perps to BE the barbeque, except for the barbeque sauce of course.

Bush may not be a lame duck president... but the reaction heretofore is lame. He has been president for two years now, enough time has passed that we cannot pin our lame military reaction to clinton.

This war on terror is yet another undeclared war on a boogeyman used to distract america into giving up freedoms and liberties that are offensive to the worldwide globalists of the dewey society...
war on terror, war on drugs, war on guns, war on poverty, war on deadbeat dads, war birth control, war on... and on and on, and on, and on...

It's time we put in the names of REAL nations, REAL people, REAL letters of marque and reprisal, REAL exit strategies, REAL definitions on what constitutes victory, and REALLY big piles of dead bodies, in places where terrorists breed more terrorists, like rats in a garbage dump.

When bush comes out and tells the TRUTH: "Islam is NOT peace. Islam is death and pretext for murder worldwide. Islam is a wicked, evil cult of satanic origin," he will have seen the light and victory will be ours.

Until he does... sorrow and defeat will be the path we as a nation must endure. W needed to be on this like a chicken on a june bug, but that would make us look like we have accused the Israelis of being... over responsive and offensively agressive.

Defend him as you always will, but he has not gone far enough... for MOST of us. He has high poll numbers, but that does NOT mean we all like his response JUST the way it is, it just means we are glad that gore was not here to surrender our nation to the evil ones immediately.

I expected better than this from W. He is truly proving to be, the son of george... and it saddens me deeply.

[Itzlzha]

even though I am mad, I still believe peace is possible

Wake up W. They (the Palis) have thousands, if not millions, of youth that have been taught to hate Israel(Jews). There will only be peace in the Mideast when one side obliterates the other. So you had better back off and let Israel do what she has to do or we may be seeing the beginning of the end .

"I believe peace is possible..."

Yup, "peace is possible..."

...um, yeah..."peace" is...possible...

...uh...

Let me help with a wake-up call...ISLAM DOES NOT EQUAL PEACE...ISLAM EQUALS DEATH!!!

Mr. President: grow a pair, and wipe these BASTARDS OFF THE PLANET!!!

[ghostkatz]

Come Messiah!!!

[r9etb]

John Derbyshire (who I like very much, BTW) has the luxury of sniping from the sidelines in sure knowledge that his advice has no practical consequence. This piece is looks like John is having a bad day.

Bush, OTOH, has to decide whether and how to take overt action in such a manner that does not worsen this already-delicate situation; or cause even more Americans to be killed; and most importantly, does not put the kibosh on other and bigger operations that may be in the works.

You'll note that the entire basis for the undie-staining on this thread is the assumption that because Bush is not doing anything overt, that he is not doing anything at all. This assumption is based on pure ignorance, not to mention more than a little wishful thinking.

[ghostkatz]

ya think???