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Israel publicly confirms it killed ex-Hamas leader Haniyeh in Tehran

23 December 2024 21:59 GMT

Israel confirmed publicly on Monday for the first time that it assassinated Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in the Iranian capital of Tehran.

Defence Minister Israel Katz made the comments as part of his warning that Israel planned to escalate its conflict with the Houthis in Yemen.

“We will strike [the Houthis’] strategic infrastructure and decapitate its leaders. Just as we did to Haniyeh, Sinwar, and Nasrallah, in Tehran, Gaza, and Lebanon - we will do in Hodeidah and Sanaa,” Katz said, referring to the slain political and military leaders of Hamas, along with Hassan Nasrallah.

Haniyeh was killed in July after he attended the swearing-in of Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian. Middle East Eye reported that witnesses believed Haniyeh was killed by a projectile.

Israel has a long history of conducting assassinations in Tehran, but the brazen killing of Hamas’ leader in a guesthouse controlled by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp was a humiliating blow to Tehran. It also marked a turning point in Israel’s regional war with Iran. 

Read more: Israel publicly confirms it killed ex-Hamas leader Haniyeh in Tehran

Israel's then-Foreign Minister Israel Katz during the handing over ceremony at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem on November 10, 2024 (Menahem Kahana/AFP)
Israel's then-Foreign Minister Israel Katz during the handing over ceremony at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem on November 10, 2024 (Menahem Kahana/AFP)