Sharon tells troops there's no yielding

JERUSALEM - Hours after a Palestinian suicide bomber killed eight Israelis on a bus outside Haifa, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told battle-weary troops near the West Bank city of Jenin yesterday that despite intensifying pressure from the United States and Europe, Israel would not halt its offensive until Palestinian militias were crushed.

Sharon addressed the troops at a base overlooking Jenin, scene of some of the bloodiest battles of Israel's 13-day campaign. On a tour of the ruined Jenin refugee camp, where the Israeli soldiers wildly cheered his remarks, Sharon said he had told President Bush that Israel is in a life-or-death struggle against terrorists.

If Israel yields to international pressure to withdraw from the West Bank, Sharon said, ''We will have to return. Once we finish, we are not going to stay here. But first we have to accomplish our mission