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Polity
Published: 22 Nov 2003
Israel predicts Europe next after Turkish bombings
In the wake of the devastating bombings against British interests in Istanbul, Israeli officials and experts predicted yesterday that the next target of global terrorism would be Europe.

"The Europeans are not really aware of the seriousness of this phenomenon of international terrorism, which has not hit them yet," Israeli government spokesperson Avi Pazner said.

"The risk is closing down on them and the free world must unite to stop this tidal wave of blind violence, which has already struck America, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Tunisia, Morocco and Saudi Arabia," he said.

Two car-bomb attacks against British interests in Istanbul killed at least 27 people Thursday, coming close on the heels of the November 15 twin suicide attacks on synagogues in the Turkish city that killed 25 people.

The wave of bombings, with Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network as a prime suspect, were seen as a reaction to Turkey's close ties with Israel and the pro-Western policies of a Muslim state with one of the world's largest armies.

Israel signed a military cooperation agreement with Turkey in 1996 angering the Arab world, and as many as 300 000 Israelis every year choose Turkey as their holiday destination.

According to an Israeli intelligence source, Turkey was targeted "because it is on the threshold of Europe, because of its secular and pro-Western regime and because it is seeking to join the European Union".

"Choosing Turkey as a target for terrorist attacks, and hitting Jewish or Western interests is tantamount to warning Europe it is next on the list," Pazner said.

Israeli newspapers warned against European apathy.

"This war of the worlds is now underway. But not everyone in the West understands yet that they could be the next stop. Sleeper cells such as the ones that operated in Turkey are spread throughout the countries of Western Europe," the Yediot Aharonot said.

"Now it is just a matter of making a decision in the Al-Qaeda umbrella organisation: When and whom to strike. Has it been blocked in one place? It will continue and strike in another place. Jihad is a malignant disease. But Europe continues to sleep," the top-selling daily added.

Amid the barrage of condemnations, which followed Thursday's blasts against the British consulate in Istanbul and a branch of the London-based HSBC Bank, some voices in Europe identified the threat hanging over Western countries which have so far been spared by Al-Qaeda.

Walter Schwimmer, secretary general of the Council of Europe, said: "These murderous acts are clearly aimed at destabilising not only Turkey but also Europe as a whole." "I call on the international community to pull together and step up its efforts to prevent despicable terrorist acts such as this," he said.

The Israeli daily Maariv blamed the West's failure in the battle against Osama bin Laden's network on several factors, including "the lack of coordination between the American intelligence agencies and their counterparts in Europe because of the rivalry between the two continents".

It also pointed to "the unwillingness of countries throughout the world to stand alongside the US in the war on terror, at least not until they get hit". – Sapa-AFP.