Bush - Arafat must arrest and jail Hamas terrorists

WASHINGTON -- President Bush, scaling back the praise he had just heaped on Yasser Arafat, said Thursday the Palestinian leader must arrest and jail Hamas militants who carry out attacks on Israeli civilians.

Bush said he was pleased Arafat had spoken out against terrorism.

"That's good. That's a positive development," he said.

However, the president went on to say a key test of Arafat's intentions was whether he arrests terrorists and keeps them in jail.

"In order for there to be peace, we must rout out terror," Bush said at the White House. "Time will tell."

On Wednesday, after Arafat spoke out against terrorism in Arabic, Bush lavished praise on the Palestinian leader. He said Arafat's statement was an "incredibly positive sign."

The State Department, more cautious, called the statement, which included an Arafat promise to use Palestinian security to deter attacks, a good first step. But department spokesman Richard Boucher also insisted that Arafat confront terror directly.

Hassan Abdel Rahman, who heads the Palestine Liberation Organization's office in Washington, said Arafat had made similar statements in the past. But, Rahman said, this time "he used stronger language."

Rahman, speaking at the National Press Club, also condemned suicide bombings and said the Palestinian Authority would do "everything we can" to stop them.

Bush's remarks Thursday coincided with the position of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon that peacemaking requires a cessation of terror. In the past, the United States has urged Israel not to let "enemies of peace" sidetrack negotiations.

Reacting to arrests

The president was reacting to the arrest of 16 Hamas members in response to the suicide attack on Rishon Letzion Tuesday while Sharon was meeting with Bush at the White House.

In the past, the Palestinian Authority had made arrests after terror attacks but sometimes quietly released the suspects after a brief period.

Bush's spokesman, Ari Fleischer, said the president considers what happens to the newly arrested suspects as "a very key test of whether the Palestinian Authority is dedicated to what they promised at Oslo, which is justice and is what the world should expect of a group of people who want to be leaders of a state that focuses on stability."

Fleischer referred to the 1993 Oslo agreements which started Israel on a path toward giving up territory in exchange for security assurances.

Israeli tanks moved toward Gaza Thursday after Israel's Cabinet approved a reprisal. Hamas operates mostly from the territory.