2ND LD: Iraq still dangerous but U.S. won't be intimidated: Bush

0 Comments | Asian Political News, Nov 3, 2003

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 Kyodo

(EDS: ADDING QUOTES)

U.S. President George W. Bush acknowledged Tuesday that Iraq is still a dangerous place but said a wave of suicide bombings will not derail U.S. efforts to rebuild a peaceful Iraq.

''It is dangerous in Iraq because there are some who believe that we're soft, that the will of the United States can be shaken by suiciders,'' Bush said at a news conference in the White House Rose Garden.

''Iraq is dangerous, and it's dangerous because terrorists want us to leave, and we're not leaving,'' he said.

His press conference came after a new wave of violence rocked Baghdad and other parts of the war-torn country.

Fresh reports from Iraq said at least four people were killed in Fallujah on Tuesday when a car bomb exploded near a police station. On Monday, a series of suicide bombings in the Iraqi capital killed at least 35 people and injured more than 200.

Since May 1, when Bush declared an end to major combat operations in Iraq, more than 200 American soldiers have been killed there.

Bush reiterated that the U.S. will stay the course in helping rebuild Iraq despite the wave of suicide bombings.

''They're not going to intimidate America, and they're going to intimidate the brave Iraqis who are actively participating in securing the freedom of their country,'' he said.

Bush blamed loyalists to ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and foreign terrorists for the recent surge in violence in Iraq.

The U.S. is cooperating with Syria and Iran to step up border controls to bar foreign fighters from crossing into Iraq, he said.

Bush also thanked Japan and other countries for pledging contributions to postwar Iraqi reconstruction at a donors' conference in Madrid last week.

''America appreciates the recent announcements of financial commitments to Iraq offered by many of the donors at the conference,'' he said.