Israel condemned as attack kills 15

ISRAEL came under international fire yesterday after nine children were killed along with a Hamas leader in a missile strike that premier Ariel Sharon boasted was "one of our biggest successes".

Even the White House, always reluctant to criticise Israeli military actions, condemned the attack as "heavy-handed".

The children were among 15 people who died when an Israeli missile flattened an apartment block in a crowded Gaza City neighbourhood.

The target of the operation was Israel's most wanted man Salah Shehadeh, 49, a founder and top commander of Hamas' military wing, Izzadine el-Qassam.

Israeli intelligence said he masterminded scores of attacks against its citizens, including a recent string of deadly suicide bombings.

Tens of thousands of angry Palestinians called for revenge as they filled the streets of Gaza City.

Mourners carried the body of a two-month-old baby wrapped in a Palestinian flag, face and black hair visible between the folds.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said: "I ask the whole world, how can they be silent? Sharon does not want peace."

The crowd of mourners carried the bodies in coffins and on stretchers, several of them small children wrapped in green Hamas flags.

President George Bush's spokesman Ari Fleischer said: "This heavy-handed action does not contribute to peace" pointing to "the loss of innocent life".

"This was a deliberate attack on the site, knowing that innocents would be lost in the consequences of the attack," he said, adding that Bush remained a strong backer of Israel.

Hamas promised revenge to avenge the death of one of its most senior figures.

"The Palestinian people will not forget the blood of the martyrs," said Hamas' spiritual leader Sheik Ahmad Yassin. "We will let deeds speak."

Shehadeh was killed along with his wife Leileh, their 14-year-old daughter Iman and a bodyguard, the group said.

A Gaza City hospital said the other children killed were aged from two months to 11 years. Two other adults also died. More than 100 were wounded.

Hamas had hinted this week that it would consider halting suicide bombing attacks if Israel pulled out of the Palestinian areas. However, the missile attack ended any such prospect.