Bush warns Iran of consequences if US ships attacked

JERUSALEM, Jan 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush warned Iran on Wednesday of "serious consequences" if it attacked U.S. ships in the Gulf.

"My advice to them is don't do it," Bush said at news conference in Israel, days after Washington said Iranian boats aggressively approached three U.S. Naval ships in the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping route off Iran's coast, and threatened that the ships would explode.

"We have made it clear publicly and they know our position, and that is there will be serious consequences if they attack our ships, pure and simple," Bush said. (Writing by Jeffrey Heller, Editing by Adam Entous)