FAR-RIGHT politician Avigdor Lieberman endorsed Benjamin Netanyahu for Israeli prime minister yesterday, all but guaranteeing that the US-educated hawk will be the country’s next leader.

A suicide bomber blew himself up on a crowded Jerusalem bus today, killing seven people and wounding 59 in an attack Israeli officials said proved the need for the disputed separation barrier it is building.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators, gathered in Washington to support Israel’s war on terrorism, shouted down a Bush administration official who suggested Palestinians have suffered too.