Israel Kills Hamas' Sheikh Ahmad Yasin

Reuters

Israeli helicopter gunships have fired missiles at Sheikh Ahmed Yassin as he left a mosque before dawn, killing the Hamas leader and at least three other people.

A Reuters reporter who rushed to the scene on Monday after hearing three loud explosions found the blown-up remains of Yassin's blood-soaked wheelchair.One witness who lives near the mosque told reporters what happened moments after the first explosion.

"I looked to see where Sheikh Ahmad Yassin was," he said. "He was lying on the ground and his chair was destroyed. People there darted left and right. Then another two missiles landed."

Yasin's body was evacuated to Gaza City's Shifa hospital. The bodies of three other people, at least two of them Yasin's bodyguards, were also at the morgue.

At least 10 people were wounded in the attack, including Yasin's two sons who were moderately hurt.

'The sheikh is dead'

"The sheikh is dead. The sheikh is dead," sobbed gunmen and Hamas fighters who gathered at the scene.

Israel has said it would step up operations to track and kill Palestinian resistance fighters after a string of bombings, including one at a strategic port last week in which 10 people were killed.

Thousands of Palestinians, many in tears, poured into the
streets. Gunmen fired into the air. Palestinian Authority officials condemned the attack.

"This is a crazy and very dangerous act. It opens the door
wide to chaos. Yasin is known for his moderation and he was controlling Hamas and therefore this is a dangerous, cowardly act," said Prime Minister Ahmad Quraya.

Yasin, who was in his late '60s, has been confined to a wheelchair since a childhood accident that paralysed him. He is also partially blind.

Yassin was sentenced by Israel in 1989 to a life term for founding Hamas and inciting Palestinians to attack Israelis. But Israel released him in 1997 as a good will gesture to Jordan's King Hussein after an attempt to assassinate Hamas leader Khalid Mashal in Jordan failed.

Marked for death

An Israeli minister said that Yasin had been "marked for death". "Yassin and the others were behind the terror framework in the Gaza Strip," Deputy Defence Minister Zeev Boim told Israel Radio.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon personally supervised the attack on Yassin, Israeli public radio reported. Sharon had given the green light to Yassin's elimination and supervised the operation, the radio said.

Hamas resistance fighters vowed to "bring death to every house" in Israel in revenge.

"Sheikh Ahmad Yassin rest in peace. They will never enjoy
rest. We will send death to every house, every city, every
street in Israel," Hamas resistance fighters shouted through loudspeakers in the streets of Gaza City.