November 11, 2001	Sunday	Shaba’an 24, 1422

UNITED NATIONS, Nov 10: Iran said on Saturday the U.S. bombing of Afghanistan, far from addressing the roots of terrorism, would probably lead to more violence.

Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, speaking to the U.N. General Assembly in New York, also said that a definition of terrorism should include Israeli practices against Palestinians, such as occupying Arab territory, expelling people from their homes and killing civilians.

Bluntly rejecting the U.S. response to the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States, Khatami said: “We should be vigilant to avoid the pitfall of fuelling rather than suppressing terrorism through unilateral practices stemming from pride and rage.

“Resorting to violence and revenge to counter such acts can hardly be justified under ethical and humane considerations.”

The United States has been bombing Afghanistan for five weeks in an attempt to overthrow the Taliban rulers and capture or kill al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, the Saudi-born militant accused of planning the Sept. 11 attacks.

It says that the Afghan civilians it has killed are the unfortunate victims of a necessary war.

U.S. President George W. Bush, speaking to the U.N. General Assembly earlier on Saturday, asked other countries for action rather than sympathy in the U.S. “war on terrorism.”

Few speakers other than Khatami challenged the U.S. approach, although South African President Thabo Mbeki said the attack on Afghanistan “should not degenerate into collective punishment against any people on any grounds whatsoever, including those of religion, race or ethnicity.”

Khatami said: “Parallel to the destruction and casualties that it inflicts, the ongoing military operation in Afghanistan cannot address the root causes of the terrorism that has imposed itself on the defenceless people of this country.”

“On the contrary, it is more likely that the continuation of the current military approach could incite sentiments that intensify intolerance and violence in the region and the whole world,” the president added.

QUESTION OF DEFINITION: Like many other Muslim leaders, Khatami challenged the U.S. definition of “terrorism,” which does not include any attacks on civilians by a recognized government but does include Arab attacks on Israeli occupation forces.

Khatami said: “We should reach an appropriate definition of terrorism and make distinction between blind criminal terrorism and the legitimate defence against occupation, violence and suppression.

“In the midst of the global terrorism crisis, the world faces an intensive and severe genre of terrorism in the Middle East. Occupation of the Palestinian territories, Syrian Golan and Lebanese Shebaa Farms, expulsion of the Palestinian people from their homeland ... are examples of this phenomenon.”

The emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, made the same point on the distinction between terrorism and resistance.—Reuters