22/03/2004

Palestine Media Center – PMC

President Yaser Arafat and the Palestinian Leadership condemned the extra-judicial execution of Hamas founder and spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmad Yasin as a “cowardly crime” that will “reinforce Palestinian national cohesion and unity” in face of the “brutal Israeli conspiracy”, which has “exceeded all the red lines”. He also declared an official three-day mourning.

“President Yaser Arafat, the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the representatives of national and Islamic factions and groups stress that this cowardly crime against Sheikh Ahmad Yasin and the other brothers who were killed with him will only lead to a reinforcement of national Palestinian cohesion and unity among all national and Islamic factions in confronting this brutal Israeli crime, which has exceeded all the red lines,” the Palestinian Leadership said in a statement released by the official news agency WAFA on Monday.

The statement noted that Hamas founder and spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmad Yasin was assassinated in front of a mosque in Gaza City after performing his predawn prayers early Monday.

President Arafat ordered a three-day mourning across the entire Occupied Palestinian Territory and in the Diaspora as of Monday.

President Arafat appealed to the Palestinian people to unite in steadfastness to deprive the Israeli government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) from an opportunity to exploit the crime for further military escalation and assassinations.

Arafat reiterated that the Palestinian people “will not back down on their national goals.”