Bush Calls Release of 1 a ‘Mission Uncompleted’ : Hostages: He thanks Syria and Iran for their role in freeing Polhill. But he says he can’t forgive the captors till all Americans are freed.

President Bush praised the role of Syria and Iran in gaining the release of Robert Polhill from his Lebanese captors on Sunday, but he called for the “immediate and unconditional release” of the remaining American and other foreign hostages.

“This is a mission uncompleted. There are other Americans held against their will,” Bush said. “I will carry the burden of the other hostages with me until every single one of them is free. And I mean it. . . . We say prayers about them every single night.”

Bush learned of Polhill’s freedom while fishing off the Florida Keys.

White House Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater said “there were no deals, no negotiations, with the hostage takers” to secure the release. He also said there has been no direct U.S. contact with the hostage takers.

And Bush added, “We’re not going to trade” to obtain the freedom of the other hostages.

Polhill’s release by the Islamic Jihad for the Liberation of Palestine provided the first step toward what could lead to improved relations with Iran.

With that in mind, Bush carefully paid tribute to the shadowy, uncertain role of Iran in obtaining Polhill’s freedom, as well as to the more obvious role of Syria.

“We . . . wish to thank those who had a hand in the release, particularly the governments of Syria and Iran, whose efforts have contributed to the release of this hostage,” the President said in a written statement issued by the White House in Islamorada, about 80 miles north of Key West, before Bush returned from his daylong fishing expedition.

Despite the nod to Iran, Fitzwater said the U.S. contacts had been strictly through the Syrian government, and another Administration official said that Syria was 85% responsible for obtaining Polhill’s freedom.

But, while the White House emphasized Syria’s role, ranking State Department officials stressed Iran’s pivotal influence.

“Iran has always been the only party with sufficient influence over the Lebanese groups to be able to end this thing,” a State Department analyst said. “Syria was clearly the facilitator on this one. It has presence in Lebanon, but it doesn’t have the clout. We’ve always known it would take Tehran’s intervention to get things moving.”

Meanwhile, a leading Iranian official indicated Sunday that other hostages may follow.

“We are really hopeful that this process would be sped up and more hostages would be released,” Kamal Kharrazi, the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations, said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

But Kharrazi added, “To speed up this process, you know, every party has to become more involved and do something on behalf of Muslim people of Lebanon.”

Fitzwater said it is “far too soon” to speculate about whether the release signaled a change in U.S. relations with Iran, which soured when the Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi was overthrown by Islamic fundamentalists in 1979.

“We have a number of difficulties with Iran and with the terrorists, certainly, who took these captives in the first place,” said Fitzwater. “It is far too soon to speculate on any possible changes in our relationship.”

Another U.S. official said that before any goodwill gestures by the United States, the remaining seven Americans held hostage in Lebanon will have to be released.

“This is a cruel process,” Bush tolds reporters. “You see pictures flash, loved ones getting their hopes up, and then some hopes are dashed.

“I don’t have forgiveness in my heart as long as one American is held against his will and as long as one family has a broken heart.”

The President headed out onto the flats of the Florida Bay early Sunday morning, on what has become an annual fishing weekend stalking bonefish, accompanied by Brent Scowcroft, his national security adviser and several others.

Fitzwater said Scowcroft, taking advantage of “excellent” shore-to-ship communications aboard a small skiff, notified Bush of the impending release. Word had been relayed to Scowcroft from the White House Situation Room, Fitzwater said, and the presidential adviser was “able to monitor this situation on a continuing basis.”

After returning to shore, the President spoke by telephone with Polhill, with the freed hostage’s wife and with Polhill’s mother.

“I said I could hardly hear him, and he said that his voice was a little weak,” Bush said. He said he told the Polhills that the Administration is not going to forget the other hostages.

Fitzwater said he had no indication that Polhill was given any message by his captors to deliver to Bush.

The presidential spokesman added that the Administration has no way of knowing what specifically motivated the hostage holders to release Polhill.

Also, U.S. officials had no explanation for why Polhill was selected as the first of the three held by Islamic Jihad for the Liberation of Palestine to be freed, except for the fact that he is a diabetic and needs daily medication.

Iran’s primary goal appears to be gaining financial credits and access to Western technology to rebuild after eight years of war with Iraq and 11 years of revolution, during which major development projects have been put on hold.

“The cost of holding hostages any longer began to work against Tehran,” explained a U.S. analyst on Iran. “It was time to begin ending it.”

Gerstenzang reported from Islamorada and Wright from Washington.