Hamas pledges bloody revenge for assassination of leader

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- Hamas threatened "100 unique reprisals" against Israel for killing its leader, Abdel Aziz Rantisi, as hundreds of thousands of mourners flooded the streets Sunday in a show of strength and fury.

But it remained unclear whether the Islamic militant group could still carry out large-scale attacks. It has failed to do so in the three weeks since Israel assassinated Rantisi's predecessor, Hamas founder Sheik Ahmed Yassin, on March 22.

Hamas chose a replacement for Rantisi on Sunday, but did not disclose his name -- a sign that Israel's systematic campaign to wipe out the Hamas leadership ahead of a planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip has put the Islamic militant group on the defensive.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Sunday picked up the support of key Cabinet ministers for his unilateral "disengagement" plan, including the Gaza withdrawal, assuring him of a Cabinet majority ahead of a hard-fought referendum among the 200,000 members of his Likud Party.

Sharon told the Cabinet on Sunday that he would forge ahead with his plan and continue to "hit the terror organizations and their leaders."

Cabinet minister Gideon Ezra said the overall Hamas leader, Damascus-based Khaled Mashaal, was also a target. Rantisi was in charge of the Palestinian areas and reported to Mashaal.

The killing of Rantisi set off demonstrations -- some of them violent -- across Gaza and the West Bank, as well as in Arab countries.

In the West Bank, Israeli troops shot and critically wounded a 14-year-old Palestinian boy in a clash between stone throwers and soldiers.

Israel said Rantisi -- like Yassin -- was targeted because he directed bloody Hamas attacks against Israelis and was planning more.

However, many Palestinians held the United States responsible for Rantisi's death, saying it is giving Israel free rein.

"The Palestinian government considers this Israeli terrorist campaign to be a direct result of American encouragement and the total American bias in favor of the Israeli government," said Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, echoing a widely held sentiment in the West Bank and Gaza.

Palestinian officials are furious with President Bush for sidelining them, endorsing Sharon's unilateral plan and backing Israel's demand to hang on to parts of the West Bank.

Bush's national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice, denied that Bush gave Sharon the go-ahead for the Rantisi killing during their White House meeting last week. She told ABC TV that Israel has the right to defend itself, but that it is "extremely important that Israel take into consideration the consequences of anything that it does."

Mashaal said Sunday that the killing of Rantisi only strengthened his group and boosted support. However, a local leader in Gaza, Ismail Hanieh, acknowledged Hamas suffered a momentary setback.

Palestinian officials said they are worried the next target for assassination will be Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, whom Israel accuses of fomenting terror. The Israeli Cabinet voted last year to "remove" Arafat.

In Sunday's funeral, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians thronged the streets of Gaza City. In addition to Rantisi, two bodyguards were killed when two missiles struck the car they were traveling in.

Hamas supporters chanted "God is great" and "revenge, revenge" and threw flowers at the three bodies as they passed in a procession. They touched Rantisi's exposed face, which was covered with shrapnel wounds.

About 200 armed Hamas militants lined the sides of the road and saluted the bodies as they approached a large blue and green mourning tent set up outside Rantisi's house. Armed men fired into the air and many in the gathered crowd raised their fists in anger.

Hamas posted a statement on its Web site pledging "100 unique reprisals" against Israel. It said it declared a state of emergency in the West Bank and Gaza until revenge was complete.

Hamas leaders have threatened to target Israeli leaders, who are heavily guarded and travel in reinforced vehicles with bodyguards and convoys.

Israel claims its security forces have foiled a dozen planned attacks, but analysts warn that sooner or later, a Hamas bomber will elude the checks. In more than three years of violence, Hamas has claimed responsibility for dozens of suicide bombings in Israel, killing hundreds.

On the other hand, a security fence around Gaza has stopped most infiltrations. In one exception, two Palestinians from Gaza hid in a false compartment of a shipping container, made their way to Israel's Ashdod port March 14 and blew themselves up, killing 10 Israelis. That bombing set off the Israeli campaign against the Hamas leadership.

Hamas has mounted dozens of attacks from the West Bank, but recently the Israeli military claimed it rounded up the entire local Hamas leadership in Nablus, the West Bank's largest city.

Political maneuvering might hold back Hamas, which is engaged in sensitive talks with the Palestinian Authority over possible power-sharing in Gaza after an Israeli withdrawal.

Israeli terrorism expert Reuven Paz said the killing of Yassin and Rantisi did not reduce Hamas' ability to carry out attacks. He noted that increasingly, militant groups are cooperating for greater effectiveness.

Sharon on Sunday jumped another hurdle in getting his unilateral plan approved by his Likud Party, which is to vote on it in a May 2 referendum. Polls show a slim majority in favor of the plan.

Two key Israeli Cabinet ministers, Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Education Minister Limor Livnat, decided Sunday to back the plan, giving Sharon a Cabinet majority and the support of influential Likud members.