Saudi: Suicide Bombings Not Terrorism

The member of the unelected Consultative Parliament, also warned that Washington's perceived support for Israel would intensify mounting hatred toward the United States.

Ahmed al-Tuwaijri said in his letter that U.S. policy has "destroyed our dreams and the dreams of peace-lovers around the world." The 120-member council is appointed by the king and reflects government opinion.

Tuwaijri's comments came after the Saudi ambassador to Britain, Ghazi Algosaibi, wrote a poem in the Arab daily Al-Hayat over the weekend praising a female suicide bomber.

Last week, a government-run telethon raised more than $100 million to help the Palestinians amid the Israeli offensive in the West Bank. Some in the United States accused the Saudis of fueling violence, though the Saudis denied any of the money was going to suicide bombers.

In his letter, al-Tuwaijri condemned Washington's classification of Palestinian suicide bombings as terrorist acts while it defends Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's incursion into West Bank areas.

"When young men and women offered their souls for the sake of freedom and independence and in defense of their religion, dignity, self and family, the United States could not find anything to describe these great sacrifices except to say they are terrorist, criminal actions," said al-Tuwaijri.

"What's the difference between the taking of innocent lives in New York and Washington and the taking of innocent lives in Ramallah and Bethlehem?" added al-Tuwaijri, a U.S.-educated Islamic fundamentalist.

Al-Tuwaijri said U.S. support for Israel "provokes hatred against America all over the world and is also a major element that sparks extremism and terrorism."

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein also said suicide bombings are a "legitimate means used by a people whose land is being occupied," state-run media reported Tuesday.

Saddam has been making payments of up to $25,000 to families of Palestinian suicide bombers since the Israeli-Palestinian clashes began in September 2000.

The Saudi government called on the United States to work toward Israel's immediate withdrawal from Palestinian lands it has seized during its offensive, saying Washington's failure to do so would undermine its credibility.

During a Cabinet meeting Monday, King Fahd said the "continuation of the aggression, committing vicious massacres on a daily basis, the killing of innocent people and the demolition of camps in the Palestinian territories had produced clear evidence of Israel's reluctance to comply with the will of the international community."

His remarks were carried Tuesday by the local press.