[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2003, Book II)]
[August 23, 2003]
[Pages 1053-1054]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



The President's Radio Address
August 23, 2003

    Good morning. Earlier this week, terrorists struck the United 
Nations headquarters in Baghdad. The U.N. personnel and Iraqi citizens 
killed in the bombings were engaged in a purely humanitarian mission. 
Men and women in the building were working on reconstruction, medical 
care for Iraqis, and the distribution of food. Among the dead was Sergio 
Vieira de Mello, the U.N. 
Representative for Iraq, a good man serving an important cause.
    On the same day, a terrorist in Jerusalem murdered 20 innocent 
people riding a bus, including 5 Americans. The killer had concealed 
under his clothing a bomb filled with metal fragments, designed to kill 
and injure the greatest number of people possible. Among the 110 people 
hurt were 40 children.
    These two bombings reveal once again the nature of the terrorists 
and why they must be defeated. In their malicious view of the world, no 
one is innocent. Relief workers and infants alike are targeted for 
murder. Terrorism may use religion as a disguise, but terrorism violates 
every religion and every standard of decency and morality.
    The terrorists have declared war on every free nation and all our 
citizens. Their goals are clear: They want more governments to resemble 
the oppressive Taliban that once ruled Afghanistan. Terrorists commit 
atrocities because they want the civilized world

[[Page 1054]]

to flinch and retreat so they can impose their totalitarian vision. 
There will be no flinching in this war on terror, and there will be no 
retreat.
    From Afghanistan to Iraq to the Philippines and elsewhere, we are 
waging a campaign against the terrorists and their allies wherever they 
gather, wherever they plan, and wherever they act. This campaign 
requires sacrifice, determination, and resolve, and we will see it 
through. Iraq is an essential front in this war. Now we're fighting 
terrorists and remnants of that regime who have everything to lose from 
the advance of freedom in the heart of the Middle East.
    In most of Iraq, there is steady movement toward reconstruction and 
a stable, self-governing society. This progress makes the remaining 
terrorists even more desperate and willing to lash out against symbols 
of order and hope like coalition forces and U.N. personnel. The world 
will not be intimidated. A violent few will not determine the future of 
Iraq, and there will be no return to the days of Saddam 
Hussein's torture chambers and mass graves.
    Working with Iraqis, coalition forces are on the offensive against 
these killers. Aided by increasing flow of intelligence from ordinary 
Iraqis, we are stepping up raids, seizing enemy weapons, and capturing 
enemy leaders. The United States, the United Nations, and the civilized 
world will continue to stand with the people of Iraq as they reclaim 
their nation and their future.
    We're determined as well not to let murderers decide the future of 
the Middle East. A Palestinian state will never be built on a foundation 
of violence. The hopes of that state and the security of Israel both 
depend on an unrelenting campaign against terror, waged by all parties 
in the region. In the Middle East, true peace has deadly enemies. Yet 
America will be a consistent friend of every leader who works for peace 
by actively opposing violence.
    All nations of the world face a challenge and a choice. In continued 
acts of murder and destruction, terrorists are testing our will, hoping 
we will weaken and withdraw. Yet across the world, they are finding that 
our will cannot be shaken. Whatever the hardships, we will persevere. We 
will continue this war on terror until all the killers are brought to 
justice, and we will prevail.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 10:30 a.m. on August 22 in Bend, OR, 
for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on August 23. The transcript was made 
available by the Office of the Press Secretary on August 22 but was 
embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office of the Press 
Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of this address.