Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
Business Insider
One of Hamas' top leaders was killed in Iran, pushing the Middle East closer to the brink
By Cheryl Teh,Jake Epstein,Kwan Wei Kevin Tan,Thibault Spirlet,Joshua Nelken-Zitser,
10 hours ago
Ismail Haniyeh was seen flashing a victory sign at the swearing-in ceremony for Iran's new president. He was killed, per Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps.
AFP via Getty Images
Ismail Haniyeh, one of the seniormost members of Hamas, was killed on Wednesday in Iran.
He was attending the inauguration of Iran's new president. Local reports say he was killed in a 2 a.m. air strike.
Hamas and Iran blamed Israel, which has carried out such strikes before. Israel has not commented.
Ismail Haniyeh , a senior Hamas leader, was killed in Iran on Wednesday in a dramatic strike.
Details of the attack were still emerging in the hours that followed.
Hamas and Iran have both blamed Israel for the strike. Israel hasn't commented.
Haniyeh, 62, was the leader of the political wing of Hamas, the armed group that controls Gaza. He was in Iran for the swearing-in of its new president, Masoud Pezeshkian.
Ismail Haniyeh (left), the political leader of Hamas, meeting Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran, Iran, on July 30, 2024. He was killed early the next morning.
Iranian Presidency / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
Local reports suggested that Haniyeh died in an early-morning airstrike on his accommodation.
Tasnim News, an outlet with links to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported Haniyeh was killed by an airborne guided projectile in northern Tehran around 2 a.m. local time.
He was staying in a residence for veterans, Tasnim said.
The Iranian state outlet IRNA reported that Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards were killed early on Wednesday at the property.
The assassination of so senior a Hamas figure could further inflame the Middle East should Iran attack Israel in response.
Protesters at an anti-Israel gathering in Tehran in the hours after the killing of Ismail Haniyeh.
An exchange of attacks in April, on an Iranian embassy in Syria and then a return attack on Israeli soil, marked an earlier escalation which stopped short of further conflict.
They and other Iran-backed groups are part of the "Axis of Resistance" — an informal military coalition opposing Israeli and US influence in the Middle East.
While Hamas is based in Gaza, Haniyeh was part of its leadership that lived mostly in Qatar.
A 'grave escalation'
In a statement published by the Hamas-affiliated Shehab news agency, Hamas accused Israel of killing Haniyeh in a "treacherous" attack.
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters that Israel assassinated Haniyeh, calling it a "grave escalation that aims to break the will of Hamas."
In an X post on Wednesday, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, said Israel was behind Haniyeh's death. In a later post he said "it is our duty to take revenge."
Khamenei met with Haniyeh on Tuesday, only hours before his death.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei (right) met with Ismail Haniyeh (center), and Ziyad al-Nakhalah, the Secretary General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, before noon on July 30, 2024.
Iranian Leader Press Office via Getty Images
Israel has not commented on the attack. But it has a long history of similar attacks, and the long-standing aim to kill Hamas' leadership.
In October, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, vowed "mighty vengeance" on Hamas and its leaders for its October 7 terror attacks on Israel, which saw some 1,200 people killed and around 250 taken hostage.
In May, International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan said in a statement that he would seek an arrest warrant for Haniyeh.
When contacted for comment on Iranian state media reports, the Israeli military told CNN they "don't respond to reports in the foreign media."
A White House spokesperson told the outlet it was aware of the reports but declined to comment.
Representatives for the Pentagon and the Israel Defense Forces did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
Haniyeh's death comes hours after Israel struck the Lebanese capital of Beirut, killing a top Hezbollah commander who it said was responsible for a deadly rocket attack in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights over the weekend.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments. It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency: our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. We strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation. Join us in shaping the news narrative together.
Comments / 0