Australia says committed to global war on terror

Australia says committed to global war on terror

Agencies, Sydney, Australia

Australia said on Sunday it had to stay committed to the global
fight against terror as the country marked a day of mourning for
the estimated 100 Australian victims of the Bali bomb attack.

"We must remain committed to the broad war on terrorism
because this (the Bali bombings) is part of it," Prime Minister
John Howard told Nine Network television.

"I don't believe in my heart this is an isolated incident
specific to Indonesia. I believe, although I cannot prove, (it)
is part of worldwide terrorist operation."

Howard warned there was increased risk of an attack on
Australian soil following the Oct. 12 bombings on the Indonesian
holiday island that killed more than 180 people, most of them
foreign tourists, 100 of them Australians.

U.S. President George W. Bush, in an address to the people of
Australia on Saturday, promised to help hunt down those
responsible for the bombings.

"Our country grieves with you, and we suffer with you. And we
send our prayers to the families who cry, and we send our prayers
for a speedy recovery for the injured," Bush said in a videotaped
message a week after the deadly nightclub bombings.

"This Sunday is a day of national mourning in Australia, a day
in which our friends mourn the needless loss of life," Bush said.

"We remember so well after September the 11th, 2001, your
prayers, your sympathies, your strong support. And we will never
forget it.

"On this sad day, on this day of mourning, America is with you
in spirit."

As fears grew of more attacks, the United States, Australia
and several European countries issued warnings about threats to
Westerners in Indonesia and the region.

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell earlier urged Australia
not to back away from the global campaign against terror.

"I hope that Australians will not view it that way, that in
some way it was their participation in the war on terror, and
therefore we should sort of back off on the campaign against
terrorism," Powell told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

"You can't hide from this. You can't walk away, you can't run
from it."

Britain's Union Jack flew at half mast atop Buckingham Palace
on Sunday in memory of victims of last week's Bali bomb attack.

The palace flag was lowered as a mark of respect for more than
180 people, many of them Australian tourists, killed when bombs
destroyed a nightclub on the Indonesian holiday island Oct. 12.

Flags also flew at half staff at British embassies and
consulates around the world on Sunday, which has been declared a
national day of mourning in Australia.

New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said on Sunday in a
message marking Australia's national day of mourning the dignity
and courage of the survivors of the Bali bombings were a beacon
for all,

In Kuala Lumpur, terror-scarred Australia announced on Sunday
the postponement of two national events planned for Malaysia, as
the government here fought what it called a terrorism smear
against it carried in a United Nations report.

An exhibition promoting Australia as a destination for higher
education and the Australian Film Festival, both planned for
Kuala Lumpur later this month, have been indefinitely delayed in
the wake of the Bali bombing in neighboring Indonesia a week ago.

Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer denied a media
report that top-level security briefings in Canberra discussed
the threat of an attack on Bali five days before the bombings.

"It's not true, there was no discussion about a bomb threat in
Bali at the national security committee of cabinet," Downer told
Seven Network television.

The Sunday Herald Sun newspaper said a security official at
the briefing confirmed a U.S. intelligence report passed onto
Australian authorities identified Bali as a "high risk target".