Bush rebukes Mahathir over speech

A White House spokesman said Mr Bush pulled Dr Mahathir aside at the Apec summit in Bangkok and told him his remarks were "wrong and divisive" and that they stood squarely against everything the president believed in.

The Malaysian leader told an Islamic summit last week that Jews ruled the world by proxy, and he called on Muslims to use their brains rather than force to overcome Jewish influence.

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On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon denounced Dr Mahathir's remarks as "slanderous" and criticised the reaction of Muslim leaders to Dr Mahathir's comments, the AFP news agency reports.

"It will take more time for the Arab world, and particularly Palestinian society, to understand that violence and extremism will only lead them to incalculable disaster."