WASHINGTON, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- President Bush said Thursday Iran "must be with us or against us" in the war against terrorism and make no attempt to destabilize the interim Afghan government of Hamid Karzai.
The warning, which an administration official declined to call a threat, came on the heels of a report that Iran is giving safe haven to a small number of al Qaida terrorists fleeing Afghanistan. It also follows reports that Iran was the source of the arms and munitions seized last week in the Red Sea by Israel, allegedly en route for the Palestinian territories.
"Iran must be a contributor in the war against terror; that our nation and our fight against terror will uphold the doctrine, either you're with us or against us; and any nation that thwarts our ability to rout terror out where it exists will be held to account, one way or the other," Bush said.
"We had some positive signals ... early in this war from the Iranians. We would hope that they would continue to be a positive force in helping us bring people to justice. We would hope, for example, they wouldn't allow al Qaida murderers to hide in their country... if they're a part of the coalition (against terror), then they need to be an active part of the coalition."
Bush said the United States would like to work with countries neighboring Afghanistan in creating "a stable interim government... if they (the Iranians) are trying -- if they in anyway, shape, or form -- try to destabilize the government (of Afghanistan), the coalition ... we'll deal with them, in diplomatic ways, initially."
The New York Times Thursday quoted unidentified U.S. government officials as saying Iran was concerned about Afghanistan's increasing pro-Western tilt and was trying to bring its influence to bear.
"Iran is trying to make sure that Afghanistan remains an Islamic state and does not become more secular, like Turkey," a defense official reportedly said.
Iran has a 400-mile border with Afghanistan, and has often meddled in its neighbor's politics -- supporting the notorious Afghan warlord, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, for example.
In particular, Iran has been concerned with the welfare of the Hazaras -- an ethnic minority concentrated in the west of Afghanistan, bordering Iran. Hazaras are Shi'ite Moslems, like Iranians, and have a history of persecution at the hands of the country's Sunni majority.
The New York Times said that U.S. intelligence showed Iran, which opposed Kabul's deposed Taliban regime, has given haven to some members of accused terrorist Osama bin Laden's al Qaida network, which is blamed for the September attacks on New York and Washington and previous bombings of U.S. embassies in East Africa.
U.S. Special Forces, meanwhile, report that Iranian agents have been infiltrating areas around Heart, bribing some tribal leaders and threatening others in an attempt to undermine U.S.-backed programs, the paper said.
"The president was dead-on when he said, 'look we have seen some positive signs of Iran helping in the war against terrorism in regard to Afghanistan.' But the fact of the matter is the regime has not changed fundamentally. There have been positive signs, but we'd like to see more," an administration official told United Press International.
"Their fundamental foreign policy has not changed: ... active opposition to the Middle East peace process."
"We've credible and substantial evidence that Iran and Hezbollah ... were involved in the planning of the delivery of these weapons. Clearly that is something we find troubling," the official added, referring to the incident last week when Israeli naval commandos boarded a vessel in the Red Sea.
They seized some 50 tons of weapons and munitions, including Katyusha rockets, mortar bombs, anti-tank weapons and C-4 explosives. Israel said the arms were meant for the Palestinian Authority, and fingered Iran and the Iran-backed Hezbollah Lebanese guerrilla group as the supplier. They also argued that evidence indicates Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was personally involved.
Under the terms of various Middle East peace agreements, Palestinian security forces are only allowed light weapons, which the Israelis are supposed to supply them with.
On Wednesday, a group of Israeli officials made the rounds in Washington, showing their evidence to the State Department and members of the president's National Security Council.
Arafat, who has said he was launching an investigation into the incident, and Iran have both denied any involvement in the illicit arms shipment.
The ship's captain Omar Akawi, speaking from an Israeli prison, said he received the weapons off Iran's coast and was supposed to deliver them to smaller vessels off the Egyptian coast.
He said he knew one of the men who loaded the deadly cargo was as a member of the Lebanese Islamic guerrilla movement, Hezbollah. The United States has long said that Iran funds and arms Hezbollah.
Capt. Akawi, 44, identified himself as a longtime member of Arafat's own Fatah movement, and said he was acting under orders from a man he said was a Palestinian official.
"Obviously, I want to make sure that the evidence is definitive," president Bush said Thursday. But I'm, like many, beginning to suspect that those arms were headed in the wrong -- to promote terror. And terror will never enable us to achieve peace in the Middle East."
"I do believe that once the evidence is in, that those responsible need to be held to account.
The president said, "Arafat must renounce terror, must reject those who would disrupt the peace process through terror, and must work hard to get to the peace table. It seems like it's up to him to make these decisions."
He added, however, that the U.S. would remain engaged with both the Palestinians and the Israelis.
