Politicians on both sides of the Border have unreservedly condemned the killing of a civilian contractor who died when handling an explosive device at a Territorial Army camp in Derry.
The device which killed Mr David Caldwell (51) is thought to have been left by dissident republicans at the city's Caw Camp.
Mr Caldwell's partner, Ms Mavis McFaul, said the family was devastated at his death and appealed for no retaliation. She was at a loss to understand why he had been targeted, she added.
"I want no revenge for Davy's death because he wouldn't want it. I have a daughter and if they [the people responsible for the attack] could see the families they leave behind, the heartbroken, they wouldn't do this."
Describing the attack as a "brutal and callous murder" the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, said those responsible represented nobody but themselves.
"They are the enemy of democracy and the peace process. They cannot be allowed to prevail . . . I call on all right-thinking people to do everything in their power to bring the perpetrators of this horrendous crime to justice. I also call on those with influence in the community to work together to ensure that no other family has to endure such tragedy," he added.
The Northern Secretary, Dr John Reid, said those behind Mr Caldwell's death were determined to bring down both the peace process and the Belfast Agreement. "Dissident republican bombers and loyalist murder gangs are two sides of the same coin. None of us in Northern Ireland can afford to let them succeed."
The leader of the Labour Party, Mr Ruairí Quinn, described the attack as a "cowardly and contemptible act" aimed at provoking further political and sectarian tensions at a time of political difficulties in the North.
In a joint statement, the North's First Minister and Deputy First Minister, Mr David Trimble and Mr Mark Durkan, offered their "heartfelt sympathy" to Mr Caldwell's family. "Once again we have seen how the actions of those opposed to peace bring pain and suffering to an innocent family. Those who placed this device have nothing positive to offer the people of Northern Ireland."
The former SDLP leader and MP for Foyle, Mr John Hume, said he "totally condemned this dreadful murder and atrocity". In doing so he was certain to speak for the vast majority of the people of Derry. His sentiments were echoed by a number of local SDLP MLAs and councillors.
Dissident republicans thinking they had struck a blow for Irish freedom by killing a civilian contractor had done nothing of the sort, Sinn Féin MP Mr Martin McGuinness insisted.
"The killing of a workman today in Derry was absolutely and totally wrong. These attacks whether by rejectionist loyalists or dissident republicans are attacks on the peace process and must be condemned in the most forthright and unequivocal terms," he added.
The DUP leader, the Rev Ian Paisley, said Mr Caldwell's killing made "vacuous nonsense" of the British government's claim that it was on top of the security situation.
"How many more innocent people must die before resolute action is taken against the murderers and lawbreakers. The time for platitudes and words is long past. What we want is action today," he demanded.
The timing of the attack was significant given that the people of the North were about to stage a major anti-sectarian rally in Belfast tomorrow, the Alliance Party leader, Mr David Ford, said. A Women's Coalition MLA, Ms Jane Morrice, said those responsible for the explosion had acted "without justification or support".
A hardline MLA from the small Northern Ireland Unionist Party, Mr Norman Boyd, blamed the Provisional IRA for the attack and called on the UUP and DUP to withdraw from the power-sharing Executive with immediate effect.
The Workers Party in the North said the perpetrators were "bent on dragging the whole community back into the nightmare years of the past". The Irish Congress of Trade Unions also joined in the condemnations of Mr Caldwell's killing.