Jones apologizes for questionable joke

WASHINGTON, April 26 (UPI) -- U.S. National Security Adviser James Jones apologized Monday for possibly offending Jews by a joke he told last week in a speech.

"I wish I had not made this off-the-cuff joke at the top of my remarks," Jones said in a statement. "I apologize to anyone who was offended by it."

To kick off a speech Wednesday before the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Jones told a lengthy joke involving a Taliban fighter being tricked by a Jewish merchant in Afghanistan, The New York Times reported. The joke got a laugh but several conservatives and some Web sites in Israel questioned whether it was in good taste.

Asked what led to the decision to apologize, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said during his media briefing Monday he understood some inquiries were made and "as (Jones) said, he wishes he hadn't told the joke."

When asked why the joke wasn't included in the official transcript of Jones's speech, Gibbs said he thought the text was published as it was to be delivered.

"(It) was obviously an on-camera speech," Gibbs said. "There was no attempt to deceive."