WASHINGTON, Sept 11: US President George W. Bush has demanded broader powers to fight terrorism, and urged Congress to increase the use of the death penalty against terrorists.

Addressing people on the second anniversary of 9/11, from the FBI Training Academy in Quantico, Virginia, Mr Bush said: “The best way to protect the American people is to stay on the offensive, to stay on the offensive at home and to stay on the offensive overseas.

“We’re going after the terrorists, wherever they hide and wherever they plan. We will keep them on the run; we’ll bring them to justice.”

Mr Bush said that the US campaign against terrorism was not aimed at the terrorists alone. “We have made clear the doctrine which says, if you harbour a terrorist, if you feed a terrorist, if you hide a terrorist you’re just as guilty as the terrorist. We’re holding regimes accountable for harbouring and supporting terror,” he added.

Demanding the death penalty for terrorists, Mr Bush said: “Under existing law, the death penalty applies to many serious crimes that result in death, including sexual abuse and certain drug-related offences. Some terrorist crimes that result in death do not qualify for capital punishment. Sabotaging a defence installation or a nuclear facility in a way that takes innocent life does not carry the federal death penalty. This kind of technicality should never protect terrorists from the ultimate justice.”

President Bush’s observance of the anniversary this year was markedly more subdued than last year, when he participated in memorial events at all three crash sites and engaged in tearful embraces with family members.