JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, in separate statements on the three-month anniversary of the September 11 attacks in the United States, called on Tuesday for a global fight against terrorism.
``On this sad occasion, I call upon the world to stand united in fighting terrorism and to uproot terrorism and the causes of terrorism,'' Arafat said in a statement released by the official Palestinian news agency WAFA.
Sharon, addressing a rally in Jerusalem to show solidarity with the United States, said the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon showed that the rights of ``life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness'' were no longer to be taken for granted.
``Now we all have to fight for these values and defend them, in the United States, in Israel and in every corner of the globe where the forces of terrorism launch death and destruction,'' Sharon said.
Both leaders also referred indirectly to the Israeli- Palestinian struggle and the almost 15 months of bloodshed since the start of a Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation.
``The Palestinian people have expressed their sympathy with the friendly people of America and the families of the victims because our people, under occupation, have been the greatest victims of terrorism,'' Arafat said.