''Yitzhak Shamir belonged to the generation of giants that founded the state of Israel and fought for the freedom of the Jewish people in its own land,''the Prime Minister,Benjamin Netanyahu,said.
The President,Shimon Peres,with whom he formed an unlikely coalition in 1984 that resulted in the two men sharing the role of prime minister,called Mr Shamir a''brave warrior''.
''He fought with courage against the British mandate in the days of the underground and his incredible contribution to the state of Israel during his time in the Mossad will remain forever enshrined in the tales of bravery of our nation,''Mr Peres said.
There was a mixed reaction in Israel to his death.''He believed that it was permissible to lie for one's country and that it was permissible to kill for it,when necessary,''Ben Caspit wrote inMa'ariv.
Mr Shamir's most criticised decision,many commentators noted,was to undermine the 1987 agreement on Palestine reached between his then foreign minister Mr Peres and Jordan's King Hussein.
His refusal to entertain any territorial compromise ushered in the first intifada and enabled''the ascendancy of the PLO[Palestine Liberation Organisation] and Hamas'',wrote Chemi Shalev inHaaretz.
Mr Shamir's second term as prime minister was punctuated by the 1991 Gulf War,when under pressure from Washington he held Israel's fire against Scud missile attacks from Iraq's Saddam Hussein.