In a shocking turn of events, the head and chief political strategist of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated in Tehran of Iran on Wednesday. Iranian officials including Hamas reported that Haniyeh was killed in an Israeli attack during inauguration of Iran’s new president. many of this event hail an era that has seen an uprising of tension in the middle east significantly.
Background
Haniyeh was a leader of Hamas, an organization for which an armed struggle against Israel has been going on for several decades. He had fled to Qatar but had been present in Iran to attend the presidential inauguration. His continued visitation to Iran was regarded as deepening the relationship between Hamas and Iran.
The Assassination
Information exists that the attempt of the Israeli air force to eliminate Haniyeh was performed with the help of the remote controlled machine gun. The attack happened when Haniyeh was inside a locality in Tehran and other individuals also happened to be affected in the same operation.
https://twitter.com/Partisangirl/status/1818488795932901837
Iran’s Response
https://twitter.com/BRICSinfo/status/1818512514205798857
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei promised to avenge the killing of Haniyeh and suggested that Qassem Suleimani who was killed earlier by the US in Baghdad was not avenged yet. Khamenei said, “With this action the criminal and terrorist Zionist regime paved the way for severe revenge against itself.” This reaction has given out signals of a further provocation in the region.
https://twitter.com/fr_Khamenei/status/1818339853471199600
Regional Implications
These factors have consequences for the region since Haniyeh is killed. It emerges only hours after Israel pummeled Beirut – a very rare event – with an airstrike that killed a leading Hezbollah military mastermind. It has now been pointed that the increasing attacks may lead to a large scale war in the Middle East region.
International Reaction
This in spite of a request by the international community that put a ban on the killings of Haniyeh. Russia and china have condemned the attack, and the US has received backlash for their involvement in the area. Palestinian Gaza Health Ministry has said that 39,360 Palestinians have been killed and over 99,900 others injured since the start of the conflict in October.
Conclusion
The killing of Ismail Haniyeh can be said to have worsened the situation in the Middle East. Such ominous statements as those which Iran has recently made, threatening to retaliate against Israel, have increased the expectation of further violence. Therefore, the global leadership needs to do all that it can to diminish the conflict and bring about a resolution without resort to force.
