US: In terror war, all options on the table

WASHINGTON — US President George W. Bush said yesterday that "all options are on the table" in protecting Washington and its allies from Iran, Iraq and North Korea which he accused of sponsoring terrorism.

"All the three countries I mentioned are now on notice that we intend to take their development of weapons of mass destruction very seriously," Bush said as he welcomed Jordan’s King Abdullah II to the White House.

"But having said that, all options are on the table as to how to make the United States and our allies more secure."

He issued the warning as American troops took extra security precautions in the Philippines after a US military special operations cargo plane was hit by ground fire over Northern Luzon.

It was Bush’s second warning in recent days. His first, raised in his State of the Union address on Tuesday, drew contempt from Muslim countries around the Middle East.

In his address, Bush said that if certain countries were timid in their response to terrorism, America would step in.

The warning drew protests from certain quarters in the Philippines that felt Bush was alluding to the country. President Arroyo, however, said Bush had mentioned the Philippines as an ally in the war on terror.

The bluntest response came from North Korea on Friday, where the foreign ministry in Pyongyang said the isolated communist state was ready for war and had been wise to develop "powerful offensive and defensive means."

"We are sharply watching the disturbing moves of the United States that has pushed the situation to the brink of war," a foreign ministry spokesman said, quoted by the Korean Central News Agency.

He said Bush’s speech was "little short of declaring a war."

North Korean state media also said US warplanes had carried out scores of reconnaissance flights in recent weeks in preparation for an attack.

Bush, who responded to the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11 by launching a global war on terrorism, said Iran, Iraq and North Korea were busily developing weapons of mass destruction.

"They need to know... our intention is to hold them accountable and the rest of the world needs to be with us, because these weapons can be pointed at them as easily as at us, and we cannot let terror and evil blackmail the United States or any other freedom loving country," said Bush.

He indicated that Washington’s patience was running thin and action could come sooner rather than later.

"We will be wise and deliberate on how we pursue our grand objective, but we will pursue it," he said. "Time is not on our side as these nations develop these sophisticated weapons."

Iran, which Washington describes as the main state sponsor of terrorism, on Thursday called Bush "thirsty for human blood," while the Iraqi regime under Saddam Hussein branded him stupid, arrogant and irresponsible.

On Friday, a leading Iranian conservative cleric, Ayatollah Ahmad Janati, lashed out at other Western allegations that Iran is looking to undermine war-battered Afghanistan’s new interim government.

"It is a lie because Iran attaches great importance to Afghanistan’s stability," said Janati, who is secretary on the powerful Guardians Council, which vets constitutional issues in the Islamic country.

The conservative ideologue, speaking during Friday prayers at the mausoleum of the Islamic republic’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, also denied rumors that Islamic zealot Osama bin Laden and members of his al-Qaeda terror network, blamed for the Sept. 11 attacks, had fled to Iran.

Few signs of stability have been visible in Paktia province, northeast of Kabul, where Afghan warlord Saif Ullah appealed Friday for a United Nations and interim government delegation to visit the area where his forces routed the army of appointed governor Padsha Khan, Afghan Islamic Press reported.

Khan’s army, attempting to gain control of the provincial capital Gardez, were driven out in a fierce two-day battle and the town remained tense, as the shura, or council of local tribal elders, ruled it did not want Khan as governor.

"The resolution said the shura was not against the interim government but it did not want the government of robbers," the Pakistan-based AIP said, quoting unidentified sources.

The battle for Gardez broke out Wednesday when Khan’s forces arrived in the rundown town of about 50,000 people to raise the flag of the interim government at the governor’s mansion ahead of Khan’s swearing in ceremony.

At least 50 people were killed, including civilians caught in the intense rocket and machine-gun fire, and 13 bodies were returned Friday to Khan whose fighters had retreated 20 kilometers (12 miles) from Gardez, the report said.

As the battle died down, Afghan interim leader Hamid Karzai reiterated pleas for more foreign security forces in Afghanistan on a visit to London but Prime Minister Tony Blair said Britain’s military involvement had limits.

While assuring Karzai there would be a "long-term" international commitment, Blair did not promise to extend Britain’s presence in Afghanistan.