CAIRO Ñ Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is again warning that the Middle East is sliding toward war.

"The situation is deteriorating in a serious manner and will get more complicated," Mubarak said. "I fear it might reach a point of no return."

Mubarak has telephoned President George Bush to discuss the latest violence in the region.

Mubarak said Israel's response to Palestinian mortar attacks is excessive and escalating tension. It was the latest warning by the Egyptian president that the Middle East is heading toward war.

The Egyptian president said that such a war will harm U.S. and Western interests in the Middle East. He said Israel's use of F-16 warplanes in bombing Palestinian Authority security installations on Friday marked a major escalation in the war.

What is happening will lead to a catastrophe and harm the interests of foreign powers in the region. The West and the United States have interests in the region."

Mubarak said he was stunned by Israel's use of the F-16 multi-role fighters. Egypt has more than 200 such aircraft.

"When I heard that, I thought: it's not possible, it must be a mistake," Mubarak said. "And I checked to make sure F-16's had indeed been used."

In Damascus, Syrian Vice President Abdul Halim Khaddam warned Israel of retaliation for any renewed attacks by the Jewish state. Khaddam said Israel realizes that an attack against any Arab country will result in a "strong and costly response" and could prompt a regional conflict.

In Jerusalem, Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer threatened to attack Syrian targets in retaliation for Hizbullah strikes agains the Jewish state. Once again, Ben-Eliezer addressed Syrian President Bashar Assad.

"We will continue to fire on Bashar Assad and his troops in Lebanon if we are attacked," Ben-Eliezer said. "Syria is the real boss in Lebanon and it authorizes the transfer of weapons to Hizbullah."

Mubarak also said, however, that his country will support peace efforts.

This includes support of the Egyptian-Jordanian plan to end the Israeli-Palestinian war and resume peace talks.

Israel's military continued to pound PA positions overnight Monday. These included a suspected mortar factory in Gaza as well as PA installations in Ramallah. In one attack, the daughter of PA security chief Jibril Rajoub was injured.

On Monday, Palestinian sources said two combatants from PA Chairman Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement were killed as they were on their way to placing a bomb near an Israeli installation. This, as Israeli security officials are said to be preparing for Arafat's ouster. Israeli sources said Arafat's regime is teetering toward collapse and Arafat might choose to flee into exile.

In Washington, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee again called on the Bush administration to stop weapons shipments to Israel. The group said Israel's use of the F-16 against PA targets violated U.S. law.

"Instead of standing against efforts aiming at protecting the Palestinians, the U.S. administration should rather lead these efforts as it is the key source of these weapons to Israel," the group said.

U.S. Vice President Richard Cheney expressed concern over Israel's use of F-16s against the Palestinians. But Cheney refused to say what the United States would do should Israel continue to deploy the U.S.-made aircraft.

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