North News
Chandigarh, July 31
Top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh has been killed in an Israeli attack in Tehran, the group announced. Haniyeh was in the Iranian capital for the inauguration ceremony of Iran’s new President Masoud Pezeshkian, who was sworn in on Tuesday, the news outlet the BBC reported.
According to Iranian media, Haniyeh was staying at a building for war veterans in Tehran when the attack occurred around 2 am. Reports indicate that he may have been killed in an airstrike. At 62, Haniyeh was widely regarded as the overall leader of Hamas.
While Israel has not officially commented on the incident, it has previously vowed to destroy Hamas following the attack on southern Israel on October 7, which resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people. In response, Israel launched a massive military operation in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, which the Hamas-run health ministry claims has killed at least 39,400 people.
The CNN reported that the assassination of Haniyeh has sent shockwaves through the Middle East, potentially destabilizing the region and jeopardizing ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas over the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The attack on Haniyeh occurred in the early hours of Wednesday, with Hamas attributing it to Israel, which has yet to respond to the allegations.
The CNN highlighted that the incident raises two critical questions: How will this impact negotiations over Gaza hostages and the ceasefire, given Haniyeh’s role as the head of Hamas’s political operations and a key interlocutor with international mediators? Additionally, could this strike inside Iran escalate into a broader regional conflict?
