Let us first reiterate a point that has been made countless times in this editorial page before: no cause can justify the terrorising and killing of innocent civilians, and we condemn this brutal mass execution in the most unambiguous of terms.

The fact that the twelve Nepalese hostages who were summarily executed had no personal connection whatsoever with the occupation forces and that Nepal has played no part in the US-led occupation makes the gruesome killings even more egregious and despicable.

This latest atrocity should come as a salutary reminder to those of us who are opposed to the US-led invasion and occupation of Iraq that not all of the elements who are fighting against the occupation are noble and heroic.

This is not to say that all of the insurgents fighting against what is now the Provisional Government of Iraq are to be equally condemned or that the continued struggle against the appointed (by the US) provisional government is unjustified.

The provisional government is an unelected body that has been installed by the US-led occupation forces, and resistance to it -- even armed resistance -- is a perfectly understandable and justifiable response.

However, a distinction must be drawn between the insurgents who are concentrating their efforts against legitimate military targets and abiding by the rules of war and the norms of civilised conduct, and those who are seeking to terrorise Iraqis and foreigners alike with acts of calculated brutality.

The fact that the cause of the insurgents to rid Iraq of foreign occupation may be just must not blind us to the fact that groups like Ansar-al-Sunna are nothing more than murderous terrorists who deserve the harshest condemnation and denunciation for their horrific acts.