Palestinian Prime Minister-designate Ahmed Qurie has called for a halt to all attacks on civilians after a suicide bombing killed at least 18 people in a restaurant in the Israeli city of Haifa.
"Mr Qurie urged the Palestinian people and all its nationaland Islamic factions to practise self restraint and to fullyhalt these actions that target civilians and harm our legitimateand just national struggle," his office said in a statement.
It was Qurie's clearest call for an end to violence since hewas nominated by President Yasser Arafat last month to replaceMahmoud Abbas, who quit as prime minister saying Israel and theUnited States were not doing enough to support his peace moves.
The statement did not make clear whether Qurie was demandingan end to attacks on Jewish settlers in the West Bank and GazaStrip. Palestinians have said in the past they do not considerthe settlers are civilians.
Israel and the international community have calledrepeatedly for the Palestinian government to crack down onIslamic militants who have killed hundreds of Israelis insuicide bombings in a three-year-old uprising for statehood.
The Palestinians have failed to crack down, although reiningin the militants is a condition under a U.S-backed peace "roadmap". They say that doing so would risk civil war.