Bush condemns Philippines bombing: U.S. President George W. Bush

Bush condemns Philippines bombing: U.S. President George W. Bush denounces the deadly bombing in the Philippines and will work "shoulder to shoulder" with the Philippine government to hunt down its authors, the White House said on Tuesday. "The president condemns the bombing in the Philippines this morning," spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters after the powerful bomb attack at the busiest airport in the rebellion-torn southern Philippines. -- AFP

Israel rejects U.S. criticism: Israel on Tuesday rejected U.S. criticism of its killing of Palestinian civilians during increasingly deadly raids into built-up Palestinian areas. "We are active everywhere because there cannot be even the smallest sanctuary of immunity for the terrorists," said a senior Israeli official who asked not to be named. He said Israel's raids were "legitimate self-defense operations". -- AFP

Bush assures India of pressure on Pakistan: U.S. President George W. Bush assured India on Tuesday that Washington continued to press Pakistan to halt infiltration of Muslim guerrillas into disputed Kashmir, an Indian government source said. Bush telephoned Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to discuss Washington's push for a new UN resolution authorizing military action against Iraq, the source said. On Monday, Vajpayee accused the United States of weakness because he said it had failed to convince Pakistan to stop supporting Islamic militants fighting India's rule in Kashmir. -- Reuters

UK law firm presses case of jailed Saudi academic: A London law firm, Salfiti & Co., called on Tuesday for British judicial authorities to take action against the Saudi Arabian government over the case of a dissident academic allegedly tortured and held without charge since 1995. Salfiti said Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul-Aziz had business and property in the United Kingdom, and suggested London should use that to pressure him over the case of jailed academic Said al-Zuair, a reformer arrested in 1995 over his allegations of official corruption. --Reuters

Iran proposes vote in Iraq on power transition: Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi called on Tuesday for a UN-supervised referendum to bring about a power transition in Iraq and avert a U.S.-led war against its western neighbor. Addressing a conference, Kharrazi also urged Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to reconcile with opposition groups to avoid bloodshed. Kharrazi stressed that Iran's proposal was different from a United Arab Emirates proposal floated last week to exile Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to avert a war. In addition to a referendum, Kharrazi called for "national reconciliation" between the Iraqi opposition leaders and the current Iraqi regime. --Reuters