"God help them, God help them, God help them," the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mr Yasser Arafat, said in Gaza City yesterday, as he expressed sympathy for the victims of the terror attacks in the United States.
President Arafat, who appeared shocked and spoke in emotional terms, was taking part in a joint press conference with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, outside the presidential office in Gaza.
The two politicians were scheduled to hold a discussion on the Middle East peace process but in the event the meeting lasted only 10 minutes and was dominated by the news from the US.
In Gaza, the atmosphere yesterday afternoon was sombre and quiet and there was little activity. However, hundreds of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon celebrated by dancing and firing guns in the air, agencies reported.
This sombre mood in Gaza was reflected in the comments of Mr Arafat who said, speaking in English: "It is very difficult for me personally, for anyone, to speak about what has happened. It is not only against the American people or government it is against the whole international human community...unbelievable, unbelievable.
"I am sending my condolences to President Bush, to his government, to his people for this unbelievable disaster that has happened. This is touching our hearts and it is very difficult to explain my feeling, my pain. God help them, God help them, God help them. It is a big crime - big, big, big crime."
When asked if he would assist the US and other governments in finding those who planned the attack and bringing them to justice, the President said: "Whatever they will ask me...I am ready to accept what they are asking me to do."
Mr Cowen said: "It must be condemned and the perpetrators of these evil acts must be found and brought to justice. I want to say that as an Irish person as well, we show and share solidarity with the American people on this terrible occasion and we assure them of our sympathy and our prayers."
The Minister has cut short his visit to the Middle East as a result of the US attacks. Instead of travelling to Damascus from Jerusalem this morning, as originally planned, the Minister has decided to attend the emergency meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, called to show solidarity with the US.
He told The Irish Times: "The magnitude of what has happened dictates that I must attend a meeting of the EU ministers to show solidarity with the United States at this critical time.
"The only issue at this stage and the most important international priority at the moment is to show solidarity with the American people and to seek out the perpetrators of these dastardly crimes and bring them to justice."
Referring to his meeting with President Arafat, he said: "The only topic for discussion was what had happened. He had already issued a statement of unequivocal condemnation and sympathy with the Bush administration and the American people.
"I spoke of the importance of that, the importance of every member of the international community, every representative of civilised nations taking that position and I also spoke, of course, of the need to ensure that the perpetrators of these acts are identified and that the level of international co-operation must now be at a level never seen before to make sure that that happens."
On the Middle East peace process, he said: "All of these political realities remain to be resolved. The fact of the matter is that these occurrences are just of such a magnitude and scale that it is quite hard to comprehend and take in, but the priority now must be to ensure that the American people know where we stand.
"We are four-square behind them at this time and we will work within the EU, within all forums in which we operate in international relations to ensure the perpetrators of this crime are brought to justice."