At Monday's House Judiciary Committee hearing, Rep. John Conyers, D-Michigan, told Ashcroft that both Democrats and Republicans want to move forward quickly with legislation to help in the battleagainstterrorism.
"Israel is engaged in a long and hard battleagainst a cruel and abject terrorism led by Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat who has set up a terrorist coalition, " said a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office.
Moreover, the president cast the battleagainst Saddam in the context of a wider struggle againstterrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction issues that are likely to remain vital for the foreseeable future.