LONDON, Oct. 29 -- The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group said Sunday its leader Fathi al-Shaqai had been shot dead on the Mediterranean island of Malta and blamed Israel for the killing.
A broadcast by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, monitored in London, said, 'The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group has announced the death of its leader, Fathi al-Shaqaqi, and pledged to avenge his killing.' 'The bullets of Zionist rancor have killed the secretary general of the Islamic Jihad, Dr. Fathi al-Shaqaqi, in Malta,' the broadcast said. The radio said Islamic Jihad had issued a statement on his death. 'It vowed to take revenge on the enemy,' the radio said, adding that Rashad Qasim had been elected successor to al-Shaqaqi.
