GAZA
CITY, April 17 (IslamOnline.net) - Abdelaziz Rantissi, Hamas new leader
in the Gaza Strip, was assassinated late Saturday,
April 17, in an Israeli air strike.
Rantissi
died of his wounds in Gaza City's Shifa hospital after his car took a
direct hit from at least two rockets fired by an Israeli helicopter,
witnesses said.
Two
of Rantissi’s associates were also killed when Israeli warplanes fired
missile at their vehicle in Gaza.
As
news emerged, thousands of Hamas flocked to the hospital while Hamas
military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, vowed "swift and
strong" retaliation.
The
56-year-old Rantissi was elected leader of the Palestinian resistance
group in Gaza Strip after Israel assassinated Hamas founder and
spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
