Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Tehran

TEHRAN: Hamas has confirmed that Ismail Haniyeh, the head of its political bureau, was killed in Tehran early Wednesday.

According to Hamas, Haniyeh was killed in an Israeli airstrike on his location in the Iranian capital. The Hamas leader was attending the inauguration of Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian.

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Reports from the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) suggest that Haniyeh, along with a member of his security detail, was shot dead.

The attack occurred shortly after Haniyeh’s arrival in Tehran for the presidential ceremony.

Ismail Haniyeh was born in a refugee camp in Gaza in 1962. He was the head of Hamas’ Political Bureau. Haniyeh earned a degree in Arabic literature from the Islamic University of Gaza in 1987 and quickly rose through Hamas ranks to become its prominent leader.

Haniyeh led Hamas to victory in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections. He went on to serve as the Prime Minister of the State of Palestine.

His tenure was later interrupted by a dismissal from President Mahmoud Abbas in 2007 due to the Fatah–Hamas conflict. However, the Palestinian would then go on to wield authority in the Gaza Strip.

Ismail Haniyeh would lead Hamas in Gaza until 2017, when he relocated to Qatar. There, he was elected the chairman of Hamas’s Political Bureau.

He would remained in this role until his death in an Israeli airstrike on Tehran on Wednesday (today).