Ariel Sharon has expressed regret that Israel did not "eliminate" the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat twenty years ago. The Israeli Prime Minister made his remarks in an Israeli newspaper.
"In Lebanon it was agreed that Arafat would not be eliminated. To tell the truth, I'm sorry we didn't eliminate him," Mr Sharon told the Israeli newspaper Maariv.
Mr Sharon was defence minister when Israeli troops invaded Lebanon in 1982 in an attempt to drive Mr Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organisation out of Lebanon. Mr Sharon blames Mr Arafat for the recent upsurge of violence in the Middle East.
These remarks have been widely condemned. A Palestinian cabinet member said, "I think this reflects what has been always said - that Sharon is trying to finish what he began in 1982". Saeb Erekat added: "And for prime ministers to announce openly their gangster intention is a reflection of what kind of government we're dealing with."
The Spanish Foreign Minister said that he deplored Mr Sharon's remarks which "warrant rejection". Josep Pique's country currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union.
This comes as Israeli forces killed two Palestinian gunmen from the Islamic militant group Hamas. The Palestinians had ambushed a convoy headed for a Jewish settlement in the southern Gaza Strip.
