PARIS, Oct 8 (AFP) - World leaders condemned the triple bombings in Egypt's Sinai peninsula which left at least 30 people dead and more than 100 injured, while renewing calls for international cooperation to stamp out terrorism.
"By targeting Muslims and Jews, Egyptians and Israelis, and women and children, the terrorists have shown their total contempt for all human life and for all human values," said US President George W. Bush.
"These acts show yet again why the civilized world must stand together against the forces of terror and defeat this evil," Bush said in a statement issued by the White House.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac were among the first to issue condemnations of the three suspected car bombs which ripped through beach resorts packed with Israeli tourists on the Red Sea coast of Egypt's Sinai desert late Thursday.
Speaking from Hanoi where they were attending a Europe-Asia conference, both called for a united front against terrorism.
"There is no other solution to peace in the Middle East than what is laid out in the roadmap for peace. Despite all this brutality we have to continue to pursue this goal," Schroeder said.
The attacks underscored the need for a united front, he said, adding: "We, as the international community, must fight terrorism wherever it occurs."
An early condemnation also came from Russia, which had one citizen killed and eight injured in the attacks.
"The news of the beastly terror acts in Egyptian cities ... have deeply shaken me," President Vladimir Putin said, urging solidarity, consolidation and coordination by the international community.
In London, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw expressed shock.
"I offer my sympathies to the families and loved ones of those who have died and to those who have been injured," he said. "We invite all regional countries to cooperate against terrorism."
In Gaza City, a spokesman for the hardline Islamic Jihad group denied Palestinian militant groups had carried out the attacks.
"I believe that Palestinians have nothing to do with this operation," Khaled al-Batsh said. Palestinian armed factions were "committed to fighting in the occupied Palestinian territories and not outside."
Islamic Jihad's larger rival Hamas also insisted it did not carry out the attacks.
Three Islamic groups have claimed the bombings so far, two of them mentioning Israel's policies against the Palestinians as a motive for the killing of at least 28 people -- 23 of them Israelis.
Israel has blamed Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda terror network.
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's top adviser said Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories had motivated those behind the attacks.
"The continuation of Israel's occupation and aggressions fuel the world's anger," Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP.
In Amman, the leader of Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood said the bomb attacks in Egypt's Sinai peninsula were the consequences of Israeli and American "terrorism" in the region.
Turkey said in a statement: "We strongly condemn the abhorrent terrorist attacks carried out against tourist facilities in the Sinai peninsula.
In Rabat, Morocco's King Mohammed VI strongly condemned the attacks:
"I learned with deep pain and distress the sad news of the terrifying explosions that shook (the tourist resort) Taba," he said in the message quoted by the press agency MAP.
The United Arab Emirates for their part denounced the "criminal act" that was "aimed at sowing disorder and destablising the region", while Kuwait also condemned what it called "terrorist explosions."
European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said the cycle of violence in the region must stop.
"I want to condemn in the strongest terms the terrorist attacks that took place last night in the sea resort area of Taba," he said in a statement.
"Many innocent Egyptian workers and Israeli holidaymakers have paid the highest price of a cycle of violence that must stop," he added.
The United States meanwhile warned its citizens in Egypt to step up security and avoid the eastern coast of the Sinai peninsula, especially the resort areas of Taba and Nuweiba in the wake of the bomb attacks.
"While there is no indication that US citizens were the targets of the attacks, Americans in Egypt are urged to exercise caution and remain vigilant," the State Department said in a message released by the US embassy in Cairo.
Canada also condemned the attacks, while Germany also warned its nationals against travelling to the popular holiday spot.