Gaza celebrations disgusting, says US

Washington/Paris/Rome/Ankara: The White House yesterday denounced what it called "fairly disgusting" celebrations in Gaza of a deadly attack on an occupied Jerusalem school and implicitly criticised moderate Arab nations' silence.

"It was extremely disheartening to see people in the streets in Gaza and elsewhere celebrating such an attack. That is fairly disgusting, actually," spokesman Tony Fratto said.

"This was a vicious attack, there is nothing that can explain away this kind of attack. But the most important thing is that the peace process continues and that the parties are committed to it," the spokesman said.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner condemned the attack.

He called the peace process "the only solution" for the region. He said talks were crucial to making the most of billions of dollars in international aid ple-dged at a Paris donor conference in December. Kouchner hosted that conference.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi urged Israel to pursue peace talks with the Palestinians despite condemning the "cowardly" shooting.

In a message to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Prodi encouraged him to continue with peace talks launched after a summit with Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas in the United States in November.

He described the peace process as "the best mid-term and long-term response to those who oppose dialogue."

Turkey condemned the deadly shooting and urged Israel and the Palestinians to pursue peace talks without fail.

"The main target of the latest terror attack in Israel ... are peace efforts. We believe the best response to such provocation is to make progress" in peace talks, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

"We sincerely hope that this hateful attack will strengthen both sides' determination to achieve peace."