A new US-backed Israeli strategy in the Palestinian territories is likely to breed more terrorists, Pakistan's foreign minister warned today.

Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri told AFP in an interview that extremist groups would exploit the situation and called on the United States to reconsider its decision to back the plan.

President George W Bush last week endorsed a scheme by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to withdraw from the Gaza strip but keep some Jewish settlements in the West Bank, sparking anger in the Arab world.

"This recent unilateral action by Prime Minister Sharon is actually an encouragement to the terrorists. Any additional sense of hurt by the Palestinians will play directly into the hands of the extremists," Kasuri said.

Pakistan is a key US ally in the fight against terrorism, and Kasuri called on the US to "stick to its original position in favour of the roadmap" for peace in the Middle East.

Kasuri spoke to AFP on the sidelines of an emergency meeting of the 57-member Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) called at the request of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat after Bush's apparent reversal of decades-old US policy.

"We urge the international community to make efforts to see that no major world power backs these unilateral actions," Kasuri said. - AFP