WASHINGTON - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice late Friday slammed a suicide bombing in Israel that left three people dead and 30 wounded, urging Palestinian leaders to take "immediate, credible steps" to deal with those behind it.
"I condemn in the strongest possible terms today's bombing in Tel Aviv," Rice said in a statement released by the State Department, offering condolences to families of victims.
Rice said Washington had already contacted Israeli officials to "convey our condolences and our support against terrorism."
She also urged Palestinian leaders to find and then take timely action against the parties who arranged for the attack.
"It is essential that Palestinian leaders take immediate, credible steps to find those responsible for this terrorist attack and bring them to justice. We understand that the Palestinian leadership has condemned the attack.
"We now must see actions that send a clear message that terror will not be tolerated," she said.
The bombing at a Tel Aviv seaside discotheque scuppered the ceasefire announced by Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas at a summit with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon earlier this month.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a Palestinian militant group loosely affiliated to the mainstream Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the attack in a telephone call to AFP.
02/26/2005 00:39 GMT - AFP