Dubai: The assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, in the early hours of Wednesday morning in Iran provoked regional and global reactions and increased the concern of the escalation of tension in a region that has been shaken by the Israeli war in Gaza and the escalation of the conflict in Lebanon.
Hamas said that Haniyeh was killed in an attack by the Zionist regime in Iran, where he participated in the inauguration ceremony of the country's new president.
Israel itself did not immediately comment, but often does not when it comes to assassinations carried out by their Mossad intelligence agency.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the U.S. was “not aware of or involved” in the killing of Haniyeh in Iran.
“I can't tell you what that means. Based on the transcript that his staff shared from an interview with Channel News Asia in Singapore, I can tell you that the need to achieve a ceasefire, the importance of it to everyone, It still remains.
However, Iran declared that the US was responsible for Haniyeh's assassination because of its support for Israel.
Attack risks to escalate regional conflicts
Iran's leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, vowed to take revenge on Israel for the killing of Hamas's political leader, saying Israel has “prepared severe punishment for itself.”
In a statement published on his official website, he said: We consider his revenge our duty and we consider Haniyeh a dear guest in our house. Following the death of the leader of Hamas, Iran announced three days of public mourning.
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zohari told Reuters: “This assassination by Israel of Haniyeh's brother is a serious escalation aimed at breaking the will of Hamas.”
He stated that Hamas will continue the path it has taken and added: We are confident of victory.
Meanwhile, Musa Abu Marzouq, a senior Hamas official, said Haniyeh's assassination would not go unanswered. He also called this assassination a cowardly act.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the killing of Haniyeh, and Palestinian groups in the occupied West Bank called for a general strike and mass demonstrations.
Russia on Wednesday called Haniyeh's killing an “unacceptable political murder”.
“This is a completely unacceptable political assassination and will lead to an escalation of tensions,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov told the state-run RIA Novosti news agency.
Konstantin Kosachev, deputy chairman of the Russian Federation Council, said he expected a “sudden intensification of mutual hatred in the Middle East.”
He wrote in Telegram: The most difficult period of confrontations in the region is about to begin.
Regarding Haniyeh's death, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that China opposes and condemns this act of “terror”.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan condemned the “mohen assassination” of his close ally and “brother” Haniyeh in Tehran.
Condemning the barbarity of the Zionists, Erdogan wrote on the X social network: “May God have mercy on my brother Ismail Haniyeh, who was martyred after this heinous attack.”
Erdogan added: The purpose of this shameful action is to destroy the Palestinian cause, the glorious resistance of Gaza and the just struggle of our Palestinian brothers and to intimidate the Palestinians.
Qatar and Egypt say the assassinations are damaging the chances of a Gaza ceasefire
Qatar strongly condemned Haniyeh's assassination and considered it a heinous crime, a “dangerous escalation and a clear violation of international and humanitarian laws.”
Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized in a statement: “Terrorism and the indiscriminate targeting of civilians has thrown the region into chaos and undermined the chances of peace.”
Egypt stated that Israel's escalating tensions show Israel's lack of political will to de-escalate tensions after Haniyeh's death.
In the statement of the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, it is stated that the escalation of tension and the lack of progress in the Gaza ceasefire negotiations complicate the situation.
In a statement, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry described the killing as a “gross violation of international law and a threat to security and stability in the region.”
Iran-backed groups condemned the killing of Haniyeh
Confirming Haniyeh's death, Iran's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced in a statement that “Iran and the Resistance Front will respond to this crime,” a term Tehran uses to refer to allied militia groups across the Middle East.
Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militia called Haniyeh's killing a “heinous terrorist crime.”
Mohammad Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Houthis' political bureau, wrote in X: “Targeting him is a heinous terrorist crime and a clear violation of idealistic laws and values.”
Yemeni rebels have fired drones and missiles at ships in the Red Sea since last November, saying they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians during the Gaza war.
The Lebanese armed group Hezbollah issued its condolences on Wednesday, but did not specifically blame Israel. The statement said that the killing of Haniyeh makes groups aligned with Iran, such as Hezbollah and Hamas, more determined to confront Israel.
The Iraqi armed group Kataib Hezbollah, part of a coalition of pro-Iranian armed groups, said in a statement on its official Telegram account on Wednesday that Israel's killing of Haniyeh in Tehran “violated all rules of engagement.”
