Al Qaeda hit-list nations feel attacks inevitable

ROME - In European cities on an al Qaeda hit list, people show a mixture of resignation, defiance and nerves.

"Sooner or later, it will be our turn," said Italian Iliaria Rambelli, who, like many others in her country, believes it could be the next target because Italy has 3000 troops in Iraq.

"There was the US, Madrid, London and Egypt. We are even more under threat because our Government is close to Bush and Britain," she said.

In an al Qaeda message on the internet on July 16, European nations were given a "final warning" to pull their troops out of Iraq within a month.

"We are addressing the crusaders still present in Iraq - Denmark, the Netherlands, Britain, Italy and those other countries whose troops continue to criss-cross Iraq," it said.

After August 15, "there will be no more messages, just actions that will be engraved on the heart of Europe". "These are our last words. The mujahideen will have other words to say in your capitals."

In Denmark, which has more than 500 troops in Iraq, Hastings Smythe was fatalistic.

"I cannot waste my time being scared. It happens or it does not."

But he admitted that he keeps an eye out for any suspicious packages and large backpacks.

"People seem nervous, even if they do not show it," said Smythe.

The Netherlands, which withdrew its troops from Iraq in April, was still named in the message.

"I am not scared. I have to see it to believe it," said tram driver Roland Paesch in Amsterdam.

"There is nothing we can do. We have to carry on," he said. "Whatever we do, they are here, in the city."

Israel said it expected al Qaeda to strike but did not think it was on the top of the hit list.

Bombings in Britain and the Egyptian Sinai have stirred speculation that the Jewish state could be targeted by Osama bin Laden.

Counter-terror expert Danny Arditi said: "My assessment is that we are slowly coming into their sights."

Speculation that al Qaeda could be drawn into the Palestinian revolt gained traction when it blew up an Israeli-owned hotel and tried to shoot down an Israeli plane in Kenya in 2002.

But experts say doctrinal differences preclude co-operation between the two groups.

- REUTERS