UK Foreign Secretary condemns Tel Aviv terrorist attack – EU press release/Non-UN document

FOREIGN SECRETARY CONDEMNS TEL AVIV BOMB ATTACK (26/02/05)

The Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, today issued a statement on last night's Tel Aviv bombing:

'I condemn this act of terror in the strongest terms, and offer my condolences to the families of the victims and my sympathies to the injured.

'This was an appalling and cynical attempt to undermine the genuine progress that we have seen in recent weeks in the search for peace, courageously undertaken by both the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority', he said.

'We must work together to ensure that the terrorists do not succeed. President Mahmoud Abbas has made clear his intent to end the violence and to act against the terrorists who perpetrate it. I completely endorse his determination to do so.

'This attack underlines the importance of the Palestinian Authority's efforts to establish a credible and capable security apparatus, able to respond adequately to the terrorist threat.

'The international meeting that we will hold on 1st March will enable us to hear the PA's own plans for security reform, and to set out how the international community will support those plans, helping to ensure effective actions against terror.'

Notes for Editors 

The London meeting with the Palestinian Authority will also cover the reform of political institutions, reconstruction and economic development.