In a rare show of unity, most leading Israeli papers join their counterparts in the Arab world and Iran in condemning the assassination attempt on Hamas political leader Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi.
The consensus among Israeli commentators is that the attack was aimed at the heart of the new peace process known as the roadmap. There is a fear it will trigger off a new spate of suicide attacks.
Commentators in the Islamic world question Israel's commitment to peace.
You tried to assassinate Rantissi, and assassinated Abu Mazen. The rockets fired yesterday morning at Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi's car were also aimed at Washington.
Headlines in Ma'ariv - Israel
Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi escaped death by the skin of his teeth. Although it failed, we will pay a heavy political price for this attempt, and it will bring back the suicide-bombers to our streets.
Commentator in Ma'ariv
It may be impossible to clearly differentiate between a 'political' leader and an 'operational' one in organizations like Hamas, but it is doubtful that the attempted assassination on Rantissi falls into the category of dismantling a 'ticking bomb'... Israel's duty is to avoid actions that renew the cycle of escalating violence, and enable the new Palestinian leadership to make its mission a reality.
Editorial in Ha'aretz - Israel
The attempt to assassinate Rantissi did not sabotage the political process because there is no political process.
Commentator in Yedi'ot Aharonot - Israel
More than once the government and the general staff were accused last year of initiating 'targeted assassinations' on days when it seemed that a step, however small, was being made to bring about calm and peace. Yesterday, the government and the general staff proved that there is smoke and fire in this claim.
Editorial in Yedi'ot Aharonot
There is one only thing that lies behind the strange, and in this case, wrong decision of the prime minister: miscalculation, a wrong assessment that the Americans will not respond.
Commentator in Yedi'ot Aharonot
Like Bush, we too are deeply troubled by the attempt to take out a mass murderer of our fellow citizens. We are troubled because Rantissi has survived to continue with killings. We wish better luck in the future to the air force in carrying out missions of protecting Israeli citizens from the murderous likes of Rantissi.
Editorial in Jerusalem Post - Israel
Ariel Sharon, the butcher of Sabra and Shatila, the killer of children and terrorist, has failed in his attempt to kill Hamas leader Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi... The way the attempt was organized shows the extent of Sharon's hatred towards the Palestinians. Does this Israeli attack not mean a direct military assault on the Sharm el-Sheikh and Aqaba summits?
If this is Israel's position - to persist with the occupation, to kill Palestinians, to set up organized terrorism, to kill with the most advanced and deadly American weapons - how can we ever talk peace?
Tishrin - Syria
What happened in Gaza yesterday makes us ask this question once more: is Ariel Sharon really serious about peace?
Ukaz - Saudi Arabia
Are Israelis allowed to commit massacres like the one yesterday in Gaza, while Palestinians are prevented from fighting to regain their legitimate rights?... The bloodshed in the Palestinian territories is not the responsibility of Palestinian organizations, but the responsibility of Sharon, the butcher, and his government of extremists who cling to the strategy of extending settlements.
Al-Akhbar - Egypt
The seven missiles fired yesterday at the vehicle of the Palestinian leader Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi by the Israeli Apache does not only mean the continuation of the policy of assassinating Palestinian resistance leaders by the butcher, Ariel Sharon, but is also a premeditated and international assassination of the roadmap.
Al-Bayan - United Arab Emirates
The assassination attempt against Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi in Gaza was an embarrassing attempt by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon not only to put hurdles in the way of the roadmap, but also to speedily drag the Palestinians into military confrontation among themselves, mainly between the Palestinian government and Hamas.
Oman - Oman
The river of blood flowing between the Palestinians and Israelis will not stop unless the violence is halted.
Al-Watan - Oman
The US condemnation of the assassination attempt against Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi and the discomfort shown by President George Bush affirms the danger posed by Israel's continuous antagonism and its grave effect on the peace process.
Al-Ittihad - United Arab Emirates
Israel will always be a continuous threat to peace, which means the situation will move swiftly towards an explosion affecting the whole world... A few hours before the attack, in a show that it was responding to peace demands, Israel started dismantling some outposts, as if it was dismantling settlements. This led to a profusion of thanks and approval from the USA... The assassination attempt against Rantissi is aimed at pushing the Palestinians to take revenge by stepping up their operations against the occupation.
Al-Jazirah - Saudi Arabia
The assassination attempt against Rantissi by the usurper regime of Israel is considered by any criterion to be a terrorist act... the missiles fired in the direction of Rantissi hit the roadmap before reaching him. Now we must await the impact of the attempt on Palestinian public opinion and also on the fate of the roadmap.
Resalat - Iran
BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.
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