U.S. President George W. Bush on Saturday condemned deadly car bombings that rippedthrough synagogues in Istanbul, and the United States pledgedto help Turkey "respond to this heinous act of terror."
"I condemn in the strongest possible terms the terroristattacks today in Istanbul, where Turkey's diverse religiouscommunities of Muslim, Jewish, and Christian believers haveflourished together for centuries," Bush said in a statement.
A White House spokesman said Bush, who was spending theweekend at the Camp David presidential retreat outsideWashington, called Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan toexpress sympathy.
At least 20 people were killed and more than 250 injuredwhen car bombs shattered two Istanbul synagogues as worshiperscelebrated the Sabbath in the mostly Muslim nation.
Turkish officials said they could not rule out a role byOsama bin Laden's al Qaeda, blamed for attacks on other Jewishtargets around the world in the past 18 months, as well as theSept. 11, 2001, attacks on America that prompted Bush'sdeclared war on terrorism.
"The focus of these attacks on Turkey's Jewish community,in Istanbul's synagogues where men, women, and childrengathered to worship God, remind us that our enemy in the waragainst terror is without conscience or faith," Bush said.
"Turkey has suffered terrible losses from terrorism fordecades, and the United States stands resolutely with Turkey inthe global war on terrorism. On behalf of the American people,I express our condolences to the families of the victims, toTurkey's Jewish community, and to all the people of the TurkishRepublic."
At the State Department, a spokesman said Secretary ofState Colin Powell had spoken with Turkish Foreign MinisterAbdullah Gul by telephone to offer U.S. condolences.
"The United States stands strongly with its close allyTurkey in the global war on terrorism. We will assist theTurkish government in every way possible to respond to thisheinous act of terror and its perpetrators," deputy spokesmanAdam Ereli said in a statement.
Turkey last week abandoned its plan to send soldiers toIraq help the United States, a NATO ally, after running intostrong opposition from Iraqi officials who feared Ankara wouldpursue its own political agenda there.