WASHINGTON, Dec 21 (AFP) - President George W. Bush on Tuesday mourned the victims of a rocket attack on a US base in northern Iraq, but said they died in service of the "vital mission" of building a democracy in the war-torn country.
The strike in Mosul killed 19 US military personnel, the US Army said, and came on the heels of a new poll showing US skepticism about the war in Iraq at a new high just over one month before elections there scheduled for January 30.
"We send our heartfelt condolences to the loved ones who suffer today," Bush told reporters after visiting relatives of soldiers wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan on his way to the Camp David presidential retreat for Christmas.
"I'm confident democracy will prevail in Iraq. I know a free Iraq will lead to a more peaceful world. So we ask for God's blessings on all who are involved in that vital mission," the US president said.
Another three military personnel, whose nationality was unknown, also died in the attack, and 57 people were wounded, according to a US Army spokesman.
"We had a rocket attack that took a lot of lives," said Bush. "This time of year is particularly sorrowful for the families as we head into the Christmas season."
"I just want them to know that the mission is a vital mission for peace. The idea of a democracy taking hold in what was a place of tyranny and hatred and destruction is such a hopeful moment in the history of the world," he said.
The strike came one day after Bush acknowledged in a year-end news conference that Iraqi forces were not ready to take over in providing security and said that deadly violence was taking its toll on US morale.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan downplayed an ABC News/Washington Post poll that found that more Americans than ever, about 56 percent, say the war in Iraq was not worth fighting given the cost to date.
"The president has never been one to govern based on polls. I mean, polls are snapshots in time, and we are working to continue to build upon the progress being made in Iraq," the spokesman said.
The poll found that some 57 percent of those surveyed disapproved of Bush's handling of Iraq, just one point lower than his rating at the height of the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's approval rating was only 35 percent -- half of where it stood when Baghdad fell -- and 52 percent said Bush should fire him.
Americans also expressed doubts about Iraq's elections planned for January 30, with 58 percent saying the country is not ready and 54 percent saying the polls would not be honest and fair.
But 60 percent said the elections should be held as planned anyway, even though 54 percent doubted the balloting would yield a stable government.
"We are working to help the Iraqi people realize a better future and to move forward on holding elections," said McClellan. "The elections are an important step forward in that process. But it is the beginning of a process."
Iraq has taken a toll on Bush's overall approval rating, which has dropped 11 points from one year ago.
Only 48 percent of Americans approved of his job performance, down from 59 percent one year ago and 66 percent two years ago.
The poll, which questioned 1,004 adults by telephone from December 16 to 19, had a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.
12/21/2004 22:51 GMT - AFP