Following Islamic Jihad operation in Israel, Rice demands Syria end support for Palestinian organizations

The US secretary of state Condaleezza Rice demanded Syria to stop its support to what she described the "terrorist groups," following the operation carried out by the Islamic Jihad movement in the Israeli Nathania city.

Rice considered that the operation, which resulted in killing four Israeli women in addition to its executor, as "a terrorist attack" addressed against the Israeli people and the ambitions of the Palestinian people.

Rice said in a statement that the Syrian government should stop its support for "terrorist organizations," especially those which have headquarters in Damascus like the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement.

She added that Syria has to ban immediately the rebellious activists from using its lands and to put an end to activities damaging the ambitions of the Lebanese, the Iraqis, and the Palestinians.

Rice indicated that the "Palestinian leadership was clear in deploring the attack, and we have to see actions implying a message that states that there will be no tolerance with terrorism." Rice's statements come in the course of the American pressures against Syria which is accused by Washington of permitting foreign fighters of infiltrating via its borders to Iraq, and of supporting the Lebanese Hizbullah party and destabilizing Lebanon's security and supporting the Islamic resistance movement ( Hamas).