LONDON, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- King Abdullah of Jordan said on Friday the U.S.-led bombing of Afghanistan must continue through Ramadan to when the military objectives against Osama Bin Laden and his al Qaida group are achieved.
Abdullah told a live Web cast on the British Broadcasting Corp. News Online that Ramadan raids were a sensitive issue with the Muslim communities, but the military needed a quick resolution of the campaign against bin Laden, chief suspect in the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.
"I think that any human being would want confrontation or violence to cease as quickly as possible," Abdullah said.
"So we wouldn't want the operations to go more than a single second longer than it has. But having said that, we do have a problem. We have to deal with it."
The Jordanian monarch visited London for talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair on consolidating the international coalition against terrorism.
He said there was no doubt that the Saudi-born dissident and his al Qaida organization were responsible for the suicide plane attacks on New York and Washington, which he described as "the most dramatic, catastrophic terrorist incident" in history.
Asked about the deaths of Afghan civilians in the bombing campaign, he said everything was being done to reduce casualties, but added, "Once you have identified your military objective, it has to be carried through with unflinching resolve."
On the question of continuing the bombing during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the king said religious holidays were "sensitive for people ... and that increases the imperative for military commanders to bring this to a quick solution."
But he acknowledged there would be a lot of "reservations" in the Muslim world if the bombing continued.
"Out of adversity comes tremendous hope of the world coming together for the better ... but definitely leading into Ramadan there are going to be a lot of reservations if the campaign is going to continue," he said.
Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf visited London on Thursday and urged Blair to support his plea for a bombing lull during Ramadan. Blair ruled out a bombing pause in public comments during Musharraf's stay in London.
Abdullah dismissed suggestions that there was an ideological conflict between the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds, saying bin Laden had hijacked and distorted Islam for his own ends.
"There is no such thing as moderate Islam and extremist Islam," the king said. "There is Islam and there are extremists."
The BBC said the king's comments would be broadcast on radio and repeated on Saturday and Sunday on the BBC's 24-hour news and information channel.
