Once again we have witnessed barbaric attacks carried out against completely innocent people by unscrupulous terrorists.

The ugly face of terrorism has shown itself again, this time in our neighboring country of India.

We offer our condolences to the families of the dead and those injured in the blasts that ripped through New Delhi on Saturday.

The attacks on the Indian capital were particularly barbaric as victims were busy shopping for gifts with the Hindu festival of Diwali just days away.

We join the world in condemning the deadly blasts in New Delhi, which killed at least 59 people and wounded more than 210 in two markets and a bus.

Though the identities of the perpetrators are unknown, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called their actions "dastardly acts f terrorism."

The horror of the terrorist attacks in New Delhi and other parts of the world leave us with many questions.

What do the people behind these assaults on innocent civilians hope to achieve? What is the agenda of those who plan and organize these atrocities?

The terrorists use fear and horror as a means of exerting political pressure.

They must never be permitted to attain their goal of spreading violence and destruction. The world must never bow to them.

In the midst of this catastrophe, Singh called on his people to act with coolness and announced that his government will be resolute in combating terrorism.

This is not simply a task for the Indian Government.

The world should not allow the situation to get out of hand by panicking or acting inappropriately. The world should not give in to the forces of fear and hatred.

Terrorist attacks flout human and moral values, undermining the cherished freedoms that define our way of life.

A terrorist act is a terrorist act no matter how it is dressed up and no matter what organization is behind it. Terrorism has no justification whatsoever. The killing of innocent civilians is simply a reprehensible activity and needs to be condemned in the strongest possible terms.

The international community should step up efforts to combat the terrorism scourge, which threatens global security.

With the list of victimized countries getting longer, the worldwide campaign against terrorism faces tough challenges.

The blasts may have been designed to sabotage talks between India and Pakistan on facilitating relief aid for the Kashmiri survivors of the October 8 earthquake.

The explosions happened just hours after the representatives of the two countries sat down to deliberate opening the heavily militarized border in disputed Kashmir to help get food, shelter and medical aid to quake victims.

The two countries agreed to open the frontier at five locations beginning on November 7. This will allow shipments of aid supplies to pass checkpoints and Kashmiri civilians free movement, with priority given to those with families divided by the border.

This is an unprecedented step, giving hope to the 3.3 million victims. Many are still sleeping in the open, and fears for their safety are rising as temperatures drop.

At a donor conference on October 27, India pledged US$25 million for aid to Pakistan.

This may be the start of further negotiations between the two nations as it demonstrates a genuine spirit of concern.

This process should build trust and permit further moves towards peace in the future.

If this life-saving endeavor was the target of the New Delhi terrorists, their action has proved to be a failure.

(China Daily October 31, 2005)