synagogue bombed in Istanbul last weekend, to comfort the relatives of the dozens who died and condemn "an attack on every Muslim, Jew and Christian."
The Associated Press (AP) news agency said the archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, described the Neve Shalom synagogue as "a heartbreaking sight in a place where the relationship between Muslims, Jews and Christians is one of cooperation and goodwill."
He also said he brought with him a similar message from Britain’s Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks to the Jewish community in Istanbul.
Williams made the comments as Turkish investigators continued to investigate claims that the terrorist network al-Qaida was responsible for the twin suicide blasts that rocked two Istanbul synagogues Saturday, killing at least 24 people and wounding more than 300 others.
GREEK ORTHODOX
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, a member of this mainly Muslim country’s Greek Orthodox minority and first among equals of Orthodox patriarchs, toured Neve Shalom on Monday, November 17 calling the bombing "an attack against the peace and unity of Turkey," AP said.
Turkish interior minister Abdul Kadir Aksu has said that there was no Turkish organization that could have carried out Saturday’s attacks on its own. He blamed said the attack had been planned by foreign groups.
Earlier, London-based al Quds-Al Arabi newspaper said it had received a statement Sunday from a group linked to the al-Qaida terrorist network claiming responsibility for the Istanbul blasts, several news reports said.
U.N. ATTACK
The group, called the Brigades of the Martyr Abu Hafz al-Masri, had also claimed responsibility for the August attack on United Nations headquarters in Baghdad, which killed 23 people, the Voice of America (VOA) reported.
Israel and Turkey have both made clear that the terrorist acts against Jewish people will not deter their close cooperation. Yet the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ), a leading Christian organization supporting Israel, noted concern within the Israeli government about growing violent anti Semitism.
The ICEJ News Service quoted Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as saying that although the suicide attack was "a hard reminder" of this hatred, Israel "will never be broken.”
"DREAM REALIZED"
"Despite repeated attempts to eradicate the Jewish people from the face of the earth, we have succeeded at realizing the dream of re-establishing an independent and democratic Jewish state," Sharon said addressing some 6000 United Jewish Community delegates, the ICEJ News Service reported.
"On Shabbat, synagogues were attacked in Istanbul, and Jews were killed… during their prayers. Our enemies have yet to understand that the Jewish people cannot be broken," he said to a standing ovation. "Can’t be broken and will never be broken."
Sharon’s comments echoed those of Foreign Ministry Director-General Yoav Biran who briefed the cabinet earlier in the day on the Istanbul attacks, saying approximately 100 of the nearly 300 wounded were Jews, 70 of whom remain in hospital, four in critical condition, the ICEJ said.
"INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM"
As police prepared for wide-scale anti-US demonstrations coinciding with the arrival of US President George W. Bush in London, Tuesday, November 18, Prime Minister Tony Blair said that the bombing of the two synagogues reinforced his determination "to defeat international terrorism."
But there was more misery for the people of Israel early Tuesday, November 18, as two Israelis were shot and killed by a suspected Palestinian gunman in an incident at a military checkpoint on the outskirts of Jerusalem, several news reports said.
One man died on the scene, the other was pronounced dead when he arrived at a hospital, as Israeli soldiers launched a manhunt to find the gunman. Eight Palestinians were wounded in Israeli military action that apparently followed the attack in the Gaza Strip.
The violence has overshadowed hopes of a breakthrough toward a peace settlement between Israel and the new Palestinian leadership.
