Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) has criticized Saturday's and Sunday's Israeli military attacks on Palestine.

In a press statement made available to ANTARA here on Monday, Gus Dur said conservative groups in Israel were behind the deadly attacks.

"The violent actions by the Israeli conservatives will never be able to resolve the conflict in the region," he said.

He said efforts to solve a problem by resorting to violence would lead Israel and Palestine to destruction.

The former president made the statement in connection with huge attacks by Israel into the Gaza strip in revenge to a rocket attack by Palestinian fighters to Israel.

So far, the Israeli attacks have killed 300 people and injured 600 others.

Gus Dur said that the Israeli military actions violated human rights and the principles of peace now being sought in the Middle East, particularly in Palestine.

He was of the opinion that the Israeli attack was an excessive reaction. The Zionist nation might not claimed the deadly attack as a form of self-protection.

"Israel cannot say its military onslaught was merely a reaction to the the previous Hamas' attack or as a form of protection," he said.

Therefore, Gus Dur said, the Israeli military should stop soon its attacks and withdraw from the Palestinian region, the Gaza Strip in particular.

He also called on Hamas to stop resorting to violence in the face of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (*)