Bush urges Israel to end incursion

WASHINGTON -- Under pressure to curb Middle East violence, President Bush urged Israel Thursday to pull its troops back from Palestinian cities and dismissed Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as a failed leader who "betrayed the hopes of his people." He ordered Secretary of State Colin Powell to the region next week seeking a cease-fire. \nWith Powell standing at his side in the Rose Garden, Bush pressed Arab leaders to do more to end terrorism and emulate the peacemaking traditions begun by the late President Anwar Sadat of Egypt and King Hussein of Jordan and carried forward by their successors, Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah. \n"As Israel steps back, responsible Palestinian leaders and Israel's Arab neighbors must step forward and show the world that they are truly on the side of peace," Bush said. "The choice and the burden will be theirs." \nAs Bush spoke, Mubarak urged the administration to "exert its maximum effort" to secure an Israeli withdrawal. In an address to his nation, Mubarak said Israel's military campaign will create hatred among 300 million Arabs. \nThe Israel-Palestinian bloodshed has put Bush under enormous political and diplomatic pressure to do something to stem the violence. He sought Thursday to spread blame and issue challenges evenly among the parties. \nMarwan Kanafani, an adviser to Yasser Arafat, welcomed the Powell mission but expressed skepticism about Bush's motives. \n"It was the maximum that we could expect from the United States president at this time, with all the commitments and alignments with the Israelis," he said in a telephone interview from Gaza. \nThere was no immediate reaction from Israel's leaders, though Prime Minister Ariel Sharon agreed to permit a U.S. envoy to meet with the besieged Arafat. \nOn Capitol Hill, Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., D-Del., chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, praised Bush for "getting more personally involved" in the Middle East. \nAnother Democrat, Rep. Anthony D. Weiner of New York, called Powell's visit "a bow to the bombers." \nThe violence has threatened to undercut Bush's anti-terrorism coalition and delay any plans to move against Iraq or other nations accused of harboring terrorists. \nBush warned Syria and Iran against inciting more terrorism. \n"To those who would try to use the current crisis as an opportunity to widen the conflict: Stay out," Bush said. \nSenior administration officials said Bush decided that last week's suicide bombings coupled with Israel's strong military response compelled him to restate his public views and add to them. \nThe call for an Israeli retreat was a shift. \nJust five days ago, he defended the storming of Arafat's compound, saying of the Israelis: "They're under attack." That same day, the administration backed a U.N. resolution calling on Israel to withdraw its troops. \nEven as he sharpened his stance toward Israel, the president criticized Arafat on Thursday in harsher-than-usual terms. U.S. officials sent several signals that Bush's patience with Arafat may be running out. \nWith Arafat's headquarters under siege, Bush said, "The situation in which he finds himself today is largely of his own making. He has missed his opportunities and thereby betrayed the hopes of his people." \nIsrael launched "Operation Defensive Shield" last Friday to crush Palestinian militias that have carried out deadly attacks on Israeli civilians, now including seven suicide bombings in the past week. \nIsraeli forces have taken over six West Bank towns and cities -- Ramallah, Qalqiliya, Jenin, Tulkarem, Bethlehem and Nablus -- and have arrested more than 1,100 Palestinians. \n"I ask Israel to halt incursions into Palestinian-controlled areas and begin the withdrawal from those cities it has recently occupied," Bush said. \nHe also urged Israel to stop building settlements in Palestinian areas and "show a respect for -- and concern about -- the dignity of the Palestinian people." He said closed border crossings should be opened to allow for a freer flow of Palestinians. \nOfficials said Bush purposely did not mention a timetable for Israel's withdrawal or for an end to settlements, which Israel had conditionally agreed to as part of the derailed peace process. \nPowell's mission could expose Bush to the risk of failure, but U.S. officials suggested they had reason to believe Israel would not snub his request to pull back. \nBush urged Arab leaders to curb terrorism, disrupt terrorist financing and "stop inciting violence by glorifying terror in state-owned media or telling suicide bombers they are martyrs." \nBy turning to Arab countries for help, Bush was tacitly acknowledging that Arafat had failed to stop terrorism and was unlikely to succeed alone, senior officials said. There were other signs that Bush was casting about for an alternative to Arafat, such as Powell's plans to talk to other Palestinian leaders during his trip. \nBush and Powell made a round of calls to leaders of several key nations, including Britain, Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.