Hamas appoints leader in secret

Gaza is in mourning over the death of Hamas leader Abdel Aziz Rantissi

Hamas has vowed to avenge the killing of its leader Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi in an Israeli missile strike, as the group appointed his replacement in secret.

Israel is targeting Hamas leaders it blames for attacks on its citizens ahead of a planned pull-out from Gaza.

Hamas is not naming its new Gaza leader for security reasons, but reports point to Ismail Haniya or Mahmoud al-Zahar.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath said Israel's actions make it harder to reach a ceasefire agreement.

Khaled Mashaal, overall Hamas chief in Damascus, told Arab television that the organisation would not be cowed by the assassination of its leaders.

"We take precautions but we believe our fate is in the hands of God, that's why we have nothing to fear," he told Al-Arabiya news channel.

HIGH-PROFILE TARGETS April 2004: Gaza Hamas leader Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi killed March 2004: Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin killed September 2003: Sheikh Yassin survives assassination bid August 2003: Senior Hamas figure Ismail Abu Shanab killed June 2003: Rantissi survives attempt to kill him July 2002: Hamas military chief in Gaza, Salah Shahada, killed September 1997: Botched attempt to kill Hamas political leader Khaled Mashaal January 1996: Yahya Ayyash, Hamas bomb maker, killed Killing stirs Arab outrage Your reaction: Rantissi killing

As tens of thousands of Palestinians marched through Gaza for Rantissi's funeral on Sunday, the Israeli military reported dozens of minor attacks on its forces.

Israeli police said it shot at two Arabs, killing one, in Israel's northern Galilee region after the pair opened fire on a patrol vehicle. A Jewish settler was wounded after a mortar attack on the Nassanit settlement in northern Gaza.

Hamas has vowed a "volcano of revenge" for the deaths, saying in a statement "revenge will come a hundredfold for the blood of Rantissi and Yassin".

'Continued strikes'

Speaking at the funeral, Hamas spokesman Mahmoud al-Zahar told the BBC's World Today programme that, despite the "dark times" facing the Palestinian people, Hamas was ready to continue its policy of violent resistance.

Mr Zahar - who survived an assassination attempt last year when his home was bombed - has been named in newspaper reports as the possible new Hamas leader in Gaza.

ABDEL AZIZ AL-RANTISSI Profile: Forceful spokesman Palestinians united in grief In pictures: Gaza violence

Ismail Haniya, who has not yet been an assassination target, is another possibility. He told mourners on Sunday: "Every time a martyr falls, Hamas is strengthened".

The BBC's Peter Greste in Gaza City says Hamas is claiming no Israeli is secure, but they made similar threats when Israel killed former leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin on 22 March.

For months, the Palestinian Authority has been negotiating with more radical groups, such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, to form a joint leadership group.

Mr Shaath, the Palestinian foreign minister, said such a united force might have been able to negotiate a lasting truce with Israel, but Hamas would be unlikely to agree to a ceasefire now.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said on Sunday that Israel would continue to strike "the leaders of terrorist organisations".

"We will never allow the murderers of today, nor those of tomorrow to harm our people. Whoever dares will be struck," he said at a ceremony commemorating the Nazi genocide of the Jews.

On Sunday, he also won Cabinet support for his plan to withdraw troops from Gaza.

An Israeli minister said Israel planned to kill Mr Mashaal as soon as the opportunity arose.

Israeli officials said Rantissi was planning a large attack on Israel to consolidate his leadership of Hamas after the killing of Sheikh Yassin.

Hamas has carried out scores of suicide bombings which have killed hundreds of Israelis in recent years.