The international community on Saturday condemned Israel's assassination of Abdel Aziz Rantisi, leader of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).

Javier Solana, foreign policy chief of the European Union (EU), indicated that the killing was unlawful and "not conducive to lowering tension."

"The European Union has consistently condemned extrajudicial killings. Today's action will not facilitate a positive outcome of this (Middle East peace) process," Solana said in a statement issued during talks between EU and Asian foreign ministers in Ireland.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said such assassinations were both wrong and unhelpful to peace.

"The British government has made it repeatedly clear that so-called targeted assassinations of this kind are unlawful, unjustified and counterproductive," Straw said in a statement.

Italy warned the killing could lead to further bloodshed.

"Italy, like the whole of the European Union, has always condemned the practice of targeted assassinations, which contribute to furthering the spiral of hatred and violence," Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said.

Portuguese Foreign Minister Teresa Gouveia said the assassination "in no way contributes to the resolution of the Middle East conflict."

Iranian Vice President Mohammad Ali Abtahi, calling Rantisi a "martyr," said the assassination was a "big crime" that "will only give fresh blood to the resistance (movement) in the region."

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said: "It is a new crime after the one of killing (Hamas founder and spiritual leader) Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and hundreds of the Palestinians."

He added that the move showed the "Israeli government's deception of the world and killing of chances for peace."

Jordan called the killing a "heinous crime."

"The Jordanian government was shocked by the Israeli heinous crime, which violates all international charters and ethics," said a government statement.

"Following the assassination of (Hamas founder) Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the Israeli government continued a series of crimes with the assassination of Rantisi," the statement said.

It called the Israeli move "a dangerous and deliberate escalation which once again confirms its (Israel's) responsibility for stepping up violence, killing and destruction."

Moroccan Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Ministry, calling the assassination a rascal action, urged the international community to take effective measures to stop "crimes of violence."

Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei also condemned Israel's assassination of the Islamic resistance movement leader, accusing the United States of encouraging such a killing.

The Israeli move has crossed "all red lines," Qurei said in his first reaction to the latest Israeli "targeted killing" of Palestinian militant leaders.

"The Palestinian cabinet considers the Israeli terrorist offensive a direct result of America's encouragement and total bias towards Israel," Qurei said in a statement issued in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Mohammed Sobeh, Palestinian permanent representative to the Arab League (AL), denounced that "the Middle East peace process has been killed by the Israeli government led by (Prime Minister Ariel) Sharon."

Sobeh accused the United States of supporting Israel's "terrorist policy" against the Palestinian people, saying that Israeli terrorist acts, destruction and killings against Palestinians were given the green light from Washington.

He warned that "a wave of violence and terrorism will sweep several regions in the world due to what is happening in the occupied Palestinian territories."

"The entire world, and particularly the Arabs, are required to take decisive deterrent actions against Sharon's terrorist government," said the Palestinian envoy.

However, an unnamed senior US State Department official said the United States gave no green light for Israel to kill Rantisi, the CNN news network reported.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said resistance is the only way.

"Arafat and the Palestinian leadership reiterate that the crimes of the occupation forces will only reinforce our resistance, " the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) said in a statement.

The PNA chief negotiator, Saeb Erekat, joined in the condemnation of the Israeli assassination.

"The Palestinian leadership strongly condemned the organized state terror of the Israeli government against our defenseless people," Erekat said.

"The Israeli government is completely responsible for such barbarian and terror of state practices against the Palestinian people," he added.

Ismail Haniya, a senior Hamas member, vowed that revenge "is coming," saying "Israel will regret this."

"Rantisi's blood will not flow in vain," he said. "The battle will not weaken our determination or break our will."

Meanwhile, Israeli officials hailed the killing of Rantisi and insisted that Israel would continue to kill other Hamas leaders.

"Israel will do with the rest of the heads of terrorist organizations," said Ra'anan Gissin, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's spokesman.

"The Palestinian (National) Authority must take this signal very seriously," he added.

He said there would be no peace and no Palestinian state before the cessation of violence and terrorist attacks.

Commenting on the assassination of Rantisi, Israeli Education Minister Limor Livnat said: "These are people who send others to kill us."

Israeli government sources said earlier that the killing was a severe blow to Hamas, which still had not recovered from the assassination of Yassin. 

Source: Xinhua