Hamas announced on Wednesday that its leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated in Tehran. Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard confirmed the incident, and Iranian state television reported on Haniyeh’s death early in the day.
While no one has claimed responsibility for the assassination, Hamas accused Israel of carrying out a “treacherous Zionist raid” on Haniyeh’s Tehran residence. Israel, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, had previously vowed to target Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders following the group’s attack on Israel on October 7, which resulted in 1,200 deaths and 250 hostages and triggered ongoing large-scale attacks on Gaza.
Iranian state television analysts immediately blamed Israel for the assassination. Israel did not comment on the incident, as it typically remains silent on operations involving its Mossad intelligence agency, according to an AP report. Israel has also been suspected of a prolonged assassination campaign against Iranian nuclear scientists and individuals linked to its atomic program.