Hamas statement on Rantissi killing

Thousands turned out for Sunday's funeral

The Palestinian militant group Hamas has issued a statement condemning Israel's killing of its Gaza leader Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi on 17 April.

Here is the text of the statement as published by the Palestinian Information Centre web site:

With faithful hearts and with complete resignation to God's predestination, and with hearts full of patience, courage and determination, our great Palestinian people and Hamas bade farewell to martyr leader Dr Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi, leader of the movement in Gaza, and his two escorts.

These are: Hero Akram Nassar and hero Ahmed al-Ghurrah, after the coward terrorist Zionist missiles killed them treacherously by bombing their car today.

The White House paved the way for this crime in the Bush-Sharon meeting, where the US president gave another Balfour Declaration for the usurping Zionist entity

This cowardly crime, which came 25 days after the killing of martyr Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, founder of Hamas, is aimed at liquidating Hamas and the Palestinian resistance.

Through this crime and bloodshed, they [the Israelis] think that they can crush our people's will of resistance and force them to surrender.

Punishment threat

The White House paved the way for this crime in Bush-Sharon meeting, where the US president gave another Balfour Declaration for the usurping Zionist entity.

In that declaration, he annulled the right to repatriation for millions of our Palestinian people, legitimised the Zionist wall of annexation and isolation and gave the green light to building settlement blocs in a clear violation of all international resolutions, which they have been manipulating for several decades.

We announce that this ugly crime, which was committed by the government of the terrorist executioner Sharon, will not go unpunished.

He who thinks that Hamas will change its course, abandon its policy, and deflect from its goal to liberate all the Palestinian lands that were occupied by this usurping Zionist enemy and from which it expelled its people, is mistaken.

While bidding farewell to the soul of the martyred leader Dr Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi, we within the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, reiterate:

• that we are forging ahead on the path of resistance and jihad;

• that we are committed to our people, nation and holy shrines;

• that we will remain faithful to the blood of our martyrs and leaders

• and that we will not be hurt or weakened by the martyrdom of our leaders and mujahideen.

May God have mercy on the leader Dr Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi and his two comrades. May God accept them in the company of prophets, honest people, martyrs and righteous people, which is the best company.

To Allah we belong, and unto Him we return. [part of a Koranic verse]

[Signed] The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas

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.