US reminds Israel to weigh consequences of targeted killing

"While Israel does the right to defend itself, we've also made clear that Israel needs to consider the consequences of any actions that it might be contemplating," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.

He added that the US position on so-called "targeted killings" had not changed, but did not repeat the key element that Washington is opposed to such acts.

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Boucher also called on the Palestinian Authority to do more to rein in militant groups like Hamas, which claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing on Wednesday that killed four Israelis at the Erez crossing in the Gaza Strip.

"There is no excuse for violence and terrorist attacks, and we've called on the Palestinian Authority to take action to ensure that these groups, like Hamas, are not able to carry out these attacks," he told reporters.

"Such attacks demonstrate why ending terror must be the highest priority," Boucher said. "We call on Palestinian Authority to act now to dismantle the terrorist capabilities and networks that perpetuate such attacks."

His comments came in response to questions about remarks made by Israel's deputy defense minister Zeev Boim, who said Hamas' spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, was "marked for death."

"Sheikh Yassin is marked for death, and he should hide himself deep underground where he will not know the difference between day and night. And we will find him in the tunnels, and we will eliminate him," Boim told Israeli army radio late Thursday.