Late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. (File image via Press TV)
The political leader of the Hamas Movement Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated early on July 31 in Iran’s capital, Tehran, according to a statement from the group that governs the Gaza Strip, which held Israel responsible.
Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards were killed after the building where they were staying was struck, Hamas said in a statement, noting that Haniyeh was in Tehran to attend the inauguration ceremony of Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian.
“The Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas mourns to our great Palestinian people, to the Arab and Islamic nation, and to all the free people of the world: Brother, leader, martyr, Mujahid Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the movement, who was killed in a treacherous Zionist raid on his residence in Tehran,” the group said.
In another statement, the group quoted Haniyeh as saying that the Palestinian cause has “costs” and “we are ready for these costs: martyrdom for the sake of Palestine, and for the sake of God Almighty, and for the sake of the dignity of this nation.”
Haniyeh left Gaza in 2019 and had lived in exile in Qatar. The top Hamas chief in Gaza is Yehya Sinwar, who is thought to be the mastermind behind the October 7 surprise attack on Israel.
One of the Israeli strikes that targeted the Strip last April claimed the lives of three of Haniyeh’s sons and four of his grandchildren.
In the West Bank, the internationally backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the assassination of Haniyeh, calling it a “cowardly act and dangerous development.” Political factions in the occupied territory called for strikes in protest at the killing.
The assassination of Hamas chief was later confirmed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which didn’t provide any details.
“Early this morning, the residence of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran was struck, resulting in his and one of his bodyguards’ martyrdom. The cause is under investigation and will be announced soon,” the guards said in a statement.
Israel has not yet addressed the assassination. The country often doesn’t comment on targeted killings carried out by its Mossad intelligence agency.
This was not the first time Israel was held responsible for an assassination in Iran. The Mossad is suspected of running a yearslong assassination campaign targeting Iranian nuclear scientists and IRGC commanders. In 2020, a top Iranian military nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was killed by a remote-controlled machine gun while traveling in a car outside Tehran.
While the assassination of Haniyeh in Tehran will lead to more escalation, it will not likely provoke a direct military response from Iran.
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