Global News, Bush blames Gaza offensive on Hamas

Israel mounts fresh attacks as international ceasefire efforts gather pace

George Bush today blamed the continuing violence in Gaza on Hamas terrorism and offered no criticism of Israel in his first comments since Israeli air strikes began a week ago.

The US president condemned Hamas's campaign of rocket attacks on Israel as an "act of terror" and said no peace deal would be acceptable unless the flow of smuggled weapons to terrorist groups was monitored and stopped.

"This recent outburst of violence was instigated by Hamas, a Palestinian terrorist group supported by Iran and Syria that calls for Israel's destruction," he said.

Bush said Hamas ended the latest ceasefire on 19 December and "soon unleashed a barrage of rockets and mortars that deliberately targeted innocent Israelis, an act of terror that is opposed by the legitimate leader of the Palestinian people, President [Mahmoud] Abbas".

Israeli aircraft and gunboats continued to target Hamas in Gaza today. In the latest attacks, the Israelis struck the homes of two Hamas operatives, saying the buildings were used to store weapons and plan attacks. Hamas said one of its military leaders, Abu Zakari al-Jamal, was killed in an air raid last night.

More than 400 Palestinians and at least four Israelis have been killed since Israel launched its offensive last Saturday. The UN estimated yesterday that a quarter of the Palestinians killed were civilians.

The White House will not comment on whether it views the Israeli response as proportionate.

In his weekly radio address, Bush said Washington was "leading diplomatic efforts to achieve a meaningful ceasefire that is fully respected".

He said he would keep the president-elect, Barack Obama, updated on the negotiations. Obama has refused to comment on the crisis while Bush remains in office.

The UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon last night urged world leaders to intensify efforts to achieve an immediate ceasefire.

Israel has said it will accept a ceasefire only if it is enforced by international monitors, and Bush backed that stance by saying a truce that involved continued rocket attacks would not be acceptable.

"Promises from Hamas will not suffice. There must be monitoring mechanisms in place to help ensure that smuggling of weapons to terrorist groups in Gaza comes to an end," he said.

He expressed concern about the humanitarian suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza, but again blamed this on Hamas.

"By spending its resources on rocket launchers instead of roads and schools, Hamas has demonstrated that it has no intention of serving the Palestinian people," Bush said.

He also condemned Hamas for hiding within the civilian population. "Regrettably, Palestinian civilians have been killed in recent days," he said.

Abbas, the moderate leader of the West Bank, and several Arab foreign ministers are flying to New York this weekend to urge the UN security council to adopt an Arab draft resolution that would condemn Israel and demand a halt to its bombing campaign in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israeli troops remain massed on the border, waiting for the signal to invade Gaza. Speaking from Syria, the exiled Hamas leader, Khaled Mashaal, warned that any ground assault would lead Israel to "a black destiny of dead and wounded".

Palestinian militants continued to fire rockets into southern Israel today. There were no injuries, though one rocket hit a house in the southern city of Ashkelon, police said.

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