Sharon demands Palestinians crush militant groups

ISRAELI leader Ariel Sharon yesterday demanded that the Palestinians smash militant groups, saying he would freeze peace efforts and take military action if they did not heed his call.

"There will be no diplomatic progress until the Palestinians take vigorous action to wipe out the terror groups and their infrastructure in the Palestinian Authority's territory," Mr Sharon said.

Mr Sharon said leaders of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad faction in Syria ordered the attack that killed four Israelis in Tel Aviv on Friday, violence that shattered a de facto truce.

Deputy Defence Minister Zeev Boim said earlier that if Mr Abbas did not rein in militants, the Israeli military would "resume all tactics", including assassinations of Islamic Jihad leaders.

Mr Boim said it was "certainly possible" Israel could strike at Syria. But later Vice Premier Shimon Peres signalled Israel was likely to hold its fire with Syria.

"Syria is involved in many terrible things and the US is at the moment leading the initiative against Syria.

In Cairo, visiting Syrian Foreign Minister Farouq al-Shara denied any Syrian responsibility for the bombing outside a Tel Aviv nightclub saying such allegations were baseless. Israel last attacked in Syria when warplanes bombed a suspected base used by Palestinian militants in October 2003, killing 21 people.

Mr Sharon said Mr Abbas's immediate test was to act against Islamic Jihad, which claimed responsibility for the first deadly Palestinian attack in Israel since November.

Washington hasurged Israel and the Palestinians "to work together to find the perpetrators of this terrorist act".

The Palestinian Authority strongly condemned the Tel Aviv bombing on Friday and said it had arrested three suspects in the West Bank.