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Bush: 'A murderer is not a martyr'

LEXINGTON, Virginia (CNN) -- Saying "no nation can be neutral" in the global fight against terrorism, President Bush said Wednesday the Palestinian Authority must tie actions to its words condemning terror, and "all parties" in the Middle East "must say clearly that a murderer is not a martyr."

Middle East leaders must now choose "the path of peace or the path of terror," Bush said in a speech to cadets at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington,

His words came as Secretary of State Colin Powell wrapped up a Middle East trip that fell short of any significant steps toward peace but "made progress" in that direction.

In a forceful show of resolve to continue the U.S. campaign against terrorism, the president tied the Middle East conflict with that global fight and warned that "outlaw regimes" will not be allowed to terrorize the world.

"In the stricken faces of mothers -- Palestinian mothers and Israeli mothers -- the entire world is witnessing the agonizing cost of this conflict," the president said. "Now every nation and every leader in the region must work to end terror."

For the Middle East, Bush said, the responsibilities for each participant are "not easy but they're clear."

"In the short run, to defuse the current crisis, the Palestinian Authority must act on its words of condemnation against terror," he said. "Israel must continue its withdrawals and all Arab states must step up to their responsibilities. The Egyptians and Jordanians and Saudis have helped in the wider war on terrorism and they must help confront terrorism in the Middle East. All parties have a responsibility to stop funding or inciting terrorism."

Bush praised Powell's work in the region, but said the Israelis, the Palestinians and their Arab neighbors now face "hard choices."

"And all parties must say clearly that a murderer is not a martyr," he said. "He or she is just a murderer."

Bush said the military operation in Afghanistan was but the first phase in the war on terrorism and the operation will not end until the world is not only safer, but better.

"In the United States of America, the terrorists have chosen a foe unlike any they have faced before," Bush said. "We're tough. We're determined. We're relentless. We will stay until the mission is done."

The second phase of the war, he said, involves digging terrorists out of other countries where they hide.

"Global terror will only be defeated by a global response," he said. "Every nation that needs our help will have it. No nation can be neutral. Around the world the nations must choose -- they're with us or they're with the terrorists."

Bush also reissued his warning that the United States will not allow an "axis of evil" made up of "a small number of outlaw regimes" to threaten the world's security with weapons of mass destruction. In previous statements, he has identified Iraq, Iran and North Korea as making up that "axis of evil."

"America will take the necessary action to oppose emerging threats," he said. "We'll be deliberate and we'll work with our friends and allies. We will uphold our duty to defend freedom."



 
 
 
 







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