Iran and its allies said Israel will face harsh retaliation for the assassination of top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, a brazen attack that dramatically ratchets up tensions in a region already on edge.
“The criminal Zionist regime has murdered our guest in our house,” Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said. “There will be a severe punishment.”
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Hamas confirmed the death of Haniyeh at a residence he was staying at in Tehran. The attack took place hours after he attended an inauguration ceremony in parliament for new Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. He had also met Khamenei.
Iranian state media said Haniyeh, who was based in Qatar and had led the Palestinian militant group’s political operations for years, was hit “by an object from the air” at 2 am (2230 GMT Tuesday).
The assassination of such a prominent ally while on a visit to Tehran represents a stunning security breach for Iran.
Tehran called an emergency meeting of the National Security Council on Wednesday, the IRNA news agency reported.
“This was a cowardly act and those responsible will definitely receive an appropriate response,” said council spokesman Ebrahim Rezaei, according to the agency.
Israel’s military has not commented on the assassination, although Israeli politicians have welcomed his death.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to destroy Hamas for the October 7 attack during which about 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage in southern Israel. Israel has been at war with Hamas in Gaza for over nine months.
Haniyeh’s death was the second high-profile assassination in the span of around 12 hours. Israel says it killed a top Hezbollah commander, Fuad Shukr, in Beirut on Tuesday.
The Hezbollah militant group in southern Israel has deep ties with Hamas, and both are backed by Iran.
Israel’s foes expressed outrage at Haniyeh’s killing and demanded retribution.
The al-Qaasam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, said Israel “will pay the price for its aggression.”
Netanyahu is “blinded by megalomania” and is leading Israel “towards the abyss and is speeding up its collapse and disappearance from the land of Palestine once and for all,” the statement said.
The terrorist group Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which is active in Gaza, described Haniyeh as a “symbol of resistance,” while the Houthi militia in Yemen called his death “a great loss.”
The Houthi militia stands firmly alongside the Palestinian militant Hamas movement, which is supported by Iran, as is the Houthi militia.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry has called the killing “despicable attack” and accused Israel of wanting to expand the war against Hamas in Gaza to the entire region.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement said Haniyeh’s death “will increase the resistance fighters’ determination … to continue the path of jihad.”
China also condemned the killing and called once again for a ceasefire in the region.
