Bush: Hamas 'instigated' crisis

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush said Friday Hamas "instigated" the violence in Gaza that has resulted in more than 400 deaths in the past week.

In his weekly radio address -- released in advance of its scheduled Saturday broadcast -- the president said he has been monitoring the situation with his national security team and has been in contact with leaders throughout the region. He said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "is actively engaged in diplomacy" following the outbreak of fighting between Israel and Hamas -- which took control of Gaza in 2007 from Fatah, the governing party in the Palestinian Authority.

"This recent outburst of violence was instigated by Hamas -- a Palestinian terrorist group supported by Iran and Syria that calls for Israel's destruction," Bush said.

The president said the current round of fighting in the area began when Hamas announced the end of a cease-fire brokered by Egypt and "soon unleashed a barrage of rockets and mortars that deliberately targeted innocent Israelis -- an act of terror that is opposed by the legitimate leader of the Palestinian people, President Abbas."

Israeli airstrikes aimed at shutting down the rocket attacks have killed at least 400 people in Gaza, officials have said.

"The United States is deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation facing the Palestinian people," Bush said Saturday.

"In addition to reducing humanitarian suffering, all nations must work toward a lasting end to the violence in the Holy Land, and a return to the path of peace," he said. "The United States is leading diplomatic efforts to achieve a meaningful ceasefire that is fully respected."

Bush's comments came two days after Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, speaking in Paris, rejected calls for a humanitarian cease-fire.

"There is no humanitarian crisis" in Gaza, she said, "and therefore there is no need for a humanitarian truce."