US/MID EAST: After a day when senior Bush administration officials hesitated to condemn the killing by Israel of Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the US State Department issued a statement saying it was "deeply troubled" by the killing.
State Department spokesman Mr Richard Boucher said Israel had the right to defend itself but added: "At the same time, we are deeply troubled by this morning's events. We do think that this event increases tension and it doesn't help efforts to resume progress towards peace."
Speaking to reporters, Mr Boucher went on: "All the sides need to remain focused on measures to bring to an end the terror and violence, and to avoid actions that escalate tensions and harm the efforts to achieve peace."
Despite the strong condemnation of the assassination by EU and world leaders, US National Security Adviser Ms Condoleezza Rice declined an opportunity to criticise the action during an interview on NBC's Today show. "Let's remember that Hamas is a terrorist organization and that Sheikh Yassin has himself, personally, we believe, been involved in terrorist planning," she said.
Ms Rice also stated that Israel gave no advance warning to the US of what it planned to do.
Israeli Foreign Minister Mr Silvan Shalom, speaking in Washington after a meeting with Vice President Mr Dick Cheney, denounced Mr Yassin as "the godfather of suicide bombers". He said "we are doing everything we can to co-ordinate our future moves with the American administration but it didn't include this action."
The attack was "pure self-defence" and undertaken to make leaders of extremist groups realise "they will pay for their crimes". Ms Rice noted that "there is always a possibility of a better day in the Middle East and some of the things that are being talked about by the Israelis, about disengagement from areas, might provide new opportunities".
UN Secretary-General Mr Kofi Annan said the Israeli attack would do nothing to help Middle East peace efforts and he condemned it.