Washington ? The White House has added a new term to its Middle East descriptions: homicide bombings.

That’s how White House spokesman Ari Fleischer has begun referring to bombing attacks in Israel, including Friday’s, in which a woman detonated explosives she was wearing, killing shoppers at a market.

A rescue worker calls for an ambulance as he helps to carry an injured woman from the scene of a suicide bombing in a Jerusalem market. A bomber blew herself up Friday at a bus stop, killing six and wounding at least 50. The White House is now calling such suicide bombings homicide

“The president condemns this morning’s homicide bombing,” Fleischer said. He also called on Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to “speak out and denounce today’s homicide attack.”

When asked why he used the term, Fleischer replied that it better captures the nature of the violence.

“These are not suicide bombings. These are not people who kill just themselves,” Fleischer said.

CNN and MSNBC used the phrase “suicide bomber” to refer to Friday’s attack. ABC News also plans to stick with “suicide bomber” in its news reports, a spokesman said.