US alone in standing by Israel after attack

Only the United States stood behind Israel tonight in the face of international condemnation of the reprisal air raid on Syria that plunged the Mideast into deeper turmoil.

President George Bush reiterated that Israel has the right to defend itself but urged restraint.

The air attack, on a terror training camp said Israel, led Syria to demand UN Security Council condemnation of Israel – a move Washington is likely to veto.

The US will only accept such a motion if it is linked to condemnation of attacks on Israel.

Britain described the Sunday air raid as “unacceptable.”

The Israeli air raid was in retaliation for a suicide bombing carried out by the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad on Saturday.

The bombing, at a Haifa restaurant, killed 19 people, including children, and the woman bomber.

President Bush refused to criticise Israel today and said it “has got a right to defend herself.”

But he also said he had cautioned Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to try to avoid escalating tensions in the region.

Bush decried the “needless murder” of 19 people in the suicide attack and said that the Palestinian Authority must do more to fight terror and “must use whatever means is necessary. All parties must assume responsibility.”

Bush said that he had spoken to Sharon: “I made it very clear to the prime minister that Israel’s got a right to defend herself, that Israel must not feel constrained in terms of defence of the homeland,” he said.

However, Bush added, “I said that it’s very important all action should avoid escalation creating higher tensions.”

New Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said today he hopes to negotiate a quick truce with Israel, but said he will not use force against militants.

In setting policy, “I will not listen to the Americans, I will listen to our national rights,” Qureia said in the West Bank, just hours after being installed as the head of an eight member emergency Cabinet by Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

“We will not confront, we will not go for a civil war,” he said. “It’s not in our interest. It’s not in the interest of our people, and it’s not in the interest of the peace process.”

China and Russia joined in the condemnation of Israel but significantly the Kremlin said a UN resolution must also call for an end to attacks against Israel.

Arab officials warned that the Israeli attack threatened to plunge the already turbulent Middle East region into further turmoil with unforeseen consequences.

Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates on Monday joined the official Arab chorus of condemnation against Israel’s attack.

“This aggression is a provocative act that takes a chance with the peace process in the region and threatens regional and international security and peace. It is a serious escalation,” said a Saudi official.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said the attack was an ”aggression on a close country,” while Jordanian Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher warned that Israel’s strike could ”drag the whole region into a circle of violence.”

At the scene of the air raid 15 miles from the Syrian capital Damascus, locals today said the camp was known to be run by Palestinian militants in the past but has been empty for years.

An official of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command they abandoned the camp seven years ago. He refused to give a reason.

A PFLP-GC leader earlier said a civilian guard was injured in the attack.

At the heavily damaged camp, in the ravine of Ein Saheb, workers were clearing the rubble from what appeared to be a single storey house that was destroyed by Israeli rockets.

Metal parts and bricks shattered by the rocket attack lay on the hill around the damaged house. A damaged green water tank was seen next to a swimming pool half filled with dirty water.

Three other buildings in the ravine remained untouched.

Israel said it targeted an Islamic Jihad training base. But Islamic Jihad said it had no bases in Syria, and Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa said Israel hit a civilian target.

He accused Israel of “aggression” and warned that Syria was capable of a “deterring balance to force Israel to review” its action.

Syrian state radio said the Security Council decision on Syria’s demand to condemn Israel’s air strikes will have major effects on the Middle East.

“What will be issued by the Security Council concerning the Syrian draft resolution will have positive or negative repercussions on peace and stability in the region and on the international community,” Damascus Radio said.