(Bloomberg) -- - Lebanese Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel, an anti-Syrian politician, was shot dead in an ambush in Beirut, raising tensions in the politically divided nation.

Lebanese television showed pictures of the windows of Gemayel's silver sedan riddled with bullets. Al-Arabiya television reported that three gunmen in a four-wheel drive attacked his motorcade at about 3:30 p.m. today. Gemayel, 34, was driving the car in the northern Christian neighborhood of Jdeideh, when one of the gunmen shot him at point-blank range.

The death of Gemayel, a Maronite Christian and son of a former president, coincides with a government power struggle. Among the stakes are Lebanon's participation in a United Nations tribunal to prosecute suspects in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. Syrian security officials are among the suspects.

The National News Agency quoted Hariri's son, Saad, as blaming today's death on Syria. ``Syrian hands are behind the killing of Pierre Gemayel,'' Hariri said.

``We do not want revenge. We want the Lebanese cause to be victorious,'' said Gemayel's father, ex-President Amin Gemayel, who appeared in front of television cameras and a shouting crowd of supporters. ``I want this night to be a night of prayer and to think about the meaning of martyrdom.''

Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora seized the moment to promote Lebanese acceptance of the UN Hariri tribunal plan. ``This act should make us more committed to the international tribunal,'' Siniora said in televised comments.

Hezbollah Allies

The conflict in Lebanon pits Siniora's March 14 coalition against opposition forces allied with Hezbollah, the Shiite Muslim party and militia. Hezbollah's cross-border raid into Israel triggered last July's war with the Jewish state.

On Nov. 11, Hezbollah and allies walked out of the cabinet just before the government adopted a UN plan to try Hariri suspects. Hezbollah pledged to topple Siniora.

Syria condemned Gemayel's killing, the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency reported on its Web site, citing an unidentified information ministry official.

The attack was intended to destabilize Lebanon, the official said, according to SANA. Syria is keen to maintain Lebanon's security, stability, unity and peace, the official said.

President Emile Lahoud, who supported Syria's longtime occupation of Lebanon, called for calm. ``Our power is in our unity,'' Lahoud said during a live address on Lebanese television.

`Act of Terrorism'

In Israel, Miri Eisin, a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said by telephone, ``it's a terrible thing when people in the opposition think they can solve political problems by killing their opponents.''

The U.S. considers the murder ``an act of terrorism,'' Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told reporters in Washington. ``We have to redouble our efforts and those of our friends in the Arab World as well as in Europe to support the Siniora government.''

French President Jacques Chirac said he ``learned with horror and consternation'' of the killing and hoped that ``the assassins are tracked down and punished,'' according to a statement e-mailed by his office.

U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair said the killing underlines the ``absolute and urgent need for a strategy for the whole of the Middle East'' and for solving conflicts worldwide.

``Lebanon is again paying a heavy price for its desire to live in peace and independence,'' European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said in a statement.

Unknown Assassins

Since Hariri's death, four other prominent anti-Syrian figures have been killed by unknown assassins: Samir Kassir, a journalist; George Hawi, former Communist party head, Gebran Tueni, member of parliament and newspaper publisher and today, Pierre Gemayel.

``It's a catastrophic event. Pierre Gemayel was a rising hope and we were counting on him,'' said Rashad Salameh, deputy head of Gemayel's Phalange party, a Maronite political group. In early evening, Phalange supporters burned tires in front of the group's Beirut headquarters.

Gemayel was a member of the March 14 political bloc that coalesced after the Hariri assassination. The bloc, named for demonstrations that took place a month after Hariri's car bomb killing, dominates the current parliament and Siniora's cabinet.

Pierre Gemayel's father, Amin, has been outspoken against Syrian occupation of Lebanon and the continuation of Hezbollah's armed militia. Amin Gemayel heads the Phalange Party.

Pierre's uncle, Bashir Gemayel, was killed in a massive 1982 Beirut bombing widely blamed on Syria. Bashir Gemayel was about to assume Lebanon's presidency in the wake of Israel's invasion of the country that year to oust the Palestine Liberation Organization