Australia wants action, Bush offers sympathy

Australia wants action, Bush offers sympathy

Agencies, Sydney, Australia

Australia said on Sunday bomb attacks which killed nearly 200
people in the resort island of Bali were proof that the war on
terror must go on and called on Indonesia to clamp down on its
"terrorist problem".

Two blasts, including one huge car bomb, killed at least 182
people and injured scores more in one of the world's most
devastating attacks against tourists.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard spoke to Indonesian
President Megawati Soekarnoputri by telephone on Sunday and said
authorities from both countries were convinced the bombings had
been carried out by what he described as terrorists.

"This wicked and cowardly attack, clearly on the evidence
available to us, is an act of terrorism that can have no
justification," Howard told a news conference.

Howard said he offered Indonesia medical assistance as well as
help from Australian police to track down those responsible but
said Indonesia must crack down on its terror problem.

Howard also ordered an urgent review of national security on
Sunday following the car bomb attack in Bali.

Many of the victims were foreigners and Howard said
Australians must "prepare ourselves as a nation for the
possibility of a significant number of Australian deaths".

Hospitals across Australia were put on standby as Royal
Australian Air Force medical teams flew to the resort island to
assist hospitals swamped by casualties and evacuate urgent cases.
Qantas Airways also scheduled extra flights to Bali to ferry
Australian holidaymakers home.

President George W. Bush said in a statement released in the
White House on Sunday that the explosions in Bali were the result
of "a cowardly act designed to create terror and chaos."

"I offer our sympathy to our friends, the people of Indonesia
for this terrible tragedy. Our prayers are also with our friends
and allies, the people of Australia, who are suffering a grievous
personal and national loss," he said.

"The world must confront this global menace, terrorism," Bush
said. "We must together challenge and defeat the idea that the
wanton killing of innocents advances any cause or supports any
aspirations. And, we must call this despicable act by its
rightful name, murder."

Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee called on the world
on Sunday to eliminate the "cancer" of religious extremism after
the Bali blasts.

"My sympathies are with families of the victims. I will
remember the serene beauty of this island which I visited last
year," Vajpayee said in the letter to President Megawati as
quoted by the Press Trust of India.

German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said on Sunday that
Germany was "horrified" by the bomb blast which also injured at
least seven Germans.

"The German government is horrified and shocked by the
terrible events in Bali in which many people were killed and
injured," Fischer said in a statement.

"We cannot rule out that Germans were also killed," he said.
"The victims and their loved ones have our deepest sympathies."
Fischer called for a quick investigation of the explosion and
that those responsible in the crime "must be identified and
brought to justice."

Joining the chorus of condemnations of the Bali bomb attack,
Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman Kamran Niaz told AFP:
"The government of Pakistan strongly condemns the terrorist
attack in Indonesia. Pakistan extends deep condolences to the
bereaved families as well as to the Indonesian government."

Niaz said Pakistan was against terrorism in all its forms.

Meanwhile, Japan urged its citizens on Sunday to avoid
Indonesia's resort island of Bali after the deadly bomb blast
The foreign ministry, in a statement, said at least four Japanese
women were injured in Saturday night's bombing. Two were
seriously injured although their conditions were not life
threatening.

"We have issued special warnings for those who are scheduled
to visit Bali, suggesting that they postpone their visits," the
statement said.

The ministry warned of possible future bomb attacks in the
area, and urged their nationals to stay away from public places
elsewhere in the archipelago.

"For those who are going to Indonesia and those staying in the
nation, we urge that they avoid public facilities and places
where many people gather, such as shopping malls, department
stores, restaurants, discos, cafes and religious centers."

The blast prompted the British Foreign Office on Sunday to
advise Britons against all travel to Bali and against all non-
essential travel to Indonesia.

Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said the attack had been
"committed by the most evil and most perverted people who think
that some political aim of theirs can be achieved by attacking
mainly young people who are enjoying themselves and also in turn
contributing a great deal to the Indonesian economy.

Refusing to speculate whether the bomb had been the work of
the al-Qaeda terrorist organization, Straw said there had been
concerns around the world about the number of Indonesian-based
terrorist cells.