Bush warns war on terror will require more sacrifice

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Struggling to rebuild American
support for the Iraq war, President George W. Bush said on
Thursday the struggle would require more sacrifice and accused
Islamic militants of trying control Iraq as a step toward a
radical Islamic empire.

“The militants believe that controlling one country will
rally the Muslim masses, enabling them to overthrow all
moderate governments in the region and establish a radical
Islamic empire that expands from Spain to Indonesia,” Bush said
in a speech.

Bush, speaking to the National Endowment for Democracy,
claimed progress in Iraq, which he portrayed as a central front
in the U.S. war on terrorism, and vowed the United States would
stay on.

“Wars are not won without sacrifice, and this war will
require more sacrifice, more time, and more resolve. The
terrorists are as brutal an enemy as we have ever faced,” he
said.

He also gave an implicit warning to Syria and Iran,
accusing them of supporting radical groups.

“State sponsors like Syria and Iran have a long history of
collaboration with terrorists and they deserve no patience from
the victims of terror. The United States makes no distinction
between those who commit acts of terror and those who support
and harbor them because they’re equally as guilty of murder,”
he said.

Bush is seeking to boost waning American support for the
war at a critical time as the country prepares for an October
15 constitutional referendum. He also is trying to regain
American confidence in his own leadership after a difficult
September, when he faced heavy criticism over the government’s
handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

A CNN/Gallup/USA Today poll last month said only 32 percent
of Americans approved of Bush’s handling of the war, which he
launched in 2003 citing the threat of weapons of mass
destruction possessed by Saddam Hussein’s government. Such
weapons were never found.