BREAKING: Tension As Top Hamas Political Leader Ismail Haniyeh Assassinated In Israeli Strike —-HAMAS’ political leader Ismail Haniyeh has been assassinated after an Israeli airstrike on his home, the group claimed.
The hit came just hours after the fugitive had attended the inauguration of the new president of Iran.
No one has come forward to claim responsibility for the Tehran assassination, which was announced on state TV.
The killing comes just hours after Israel killed a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut with an airstrike.
Haniyeh, who lives in Qatar, has been the tough-talking face of Hamas’ international diplomacy as the group has held on to Israeli hostages in tunnels below Gaza.
The terror group has now pinned the attack on Israel – but the country is yet to comment on Haniyeh’s death.
Iran claimed that the airstrike was “carried out by a missile launched from one country to another, not from within Iran” at around 2am, a local news outlet said.
Haniyeh was in Tehran to attend the swearing-in ceremony of new Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday.
Hamas said in a statement that Haniyeh was killed “in a Zionist airstrike on his residence in Tehran after he participated in the inauguration of Iran’s new president.”
The statement said: “Hamas declares to the great Palestinian people and the people of the Arab and Islamic nations and all the free people of the world, brother leader Ismail Haniyeh a martyr.”
Israel has vowed to kill Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders following the group’s October 7 terror attack.
Hamas said Haniyeh’s death “will not go unpunished” and described the strike as a “severe escalation”.
Iran condemned the attack on its soil and lionised Haniyeh as it continues to investigate the strike.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry said the “pure blood of this brave warrior” who had spent his life fighting Israel “will never be wasted”.
While the Iranian National Security Council said the assassination crossed a “red line” and “will be costly for the enemy”.
The head of the Palestinian Authority denounced the killing of Hamas’ leader, posting on X that it was a “cowardly act”.
Hussein al-Sheikh said: “We strongly denounce and condemn the assassination of the head of the Political Bureau, the national leader, Ismail Haniyeh.”
“We consider it a cowardly act, this pushes us to remain more steadfast in the face of the occupation, and the necessity of achieving the unity of the Palestinian forces and factions.”
Israel says about 116 hostages are still captive in Gaza and Prime Minister Benjamine Netanyahu has been pressured over his handling of the war.
However, Netanyahu has vowed that he will not stop until Hamas is destroyed.
Russia has described the attack as “absolutely unacceptable” with Turkey saying it demonstrated Israel does not was peace.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said the attack escalated the “war in Gaza to a regional level”.
“If the international community does not take action to stop Israel, our region will face much larger conflicts.”
Turkey’s comments come days after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to invade Israel.
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