Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran on Wednesday (31) using an explosive device that was secretly hidden in the house where he was staying, he told CNN a source familiar with the matter.
According to the source, who was briefed on the operation, the bomb was hidden about two months ago in the guest house where Haniyeh was staying in Tehran and was detonated remotely while he was inside the room.
The Iranian government and Hamas claim Israel carried out the assassination. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.
US officials were informed about the operation by Israeli authorities only after the killing, the source said.
The New York Times was the first to report the details of Haniyeh’s assassination.
Haniyeh’s assassination has once again raised fears that Israel’s conflict with Hamas and its allies could escalate into a full-fledged, multi-faceted war in the Middle East.
Iranian state media and Hamas have previously indicated that Haniyeh was killed by a rocket fired from outside the building where he was staying.
But the revelation that a bomb was smuggled into the guest house, which was under the protection of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, indicates a surprising security breach for the IRGC.
A CNN requested comments from the Iranian government.
It is unclear when Haniyeh arrived in Tehran, but Iranian state media first reported that he would arrive to attend the inauguration of the country’s new president on Monday (29). He had a busy schedule of public appearances and meetings before he was assassinated, according to Iranian state media reports.
Haniyeh was photographed on Tuesday (30) ahead of the inauguration meeting with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state media later published images of Haniyeh meeting with Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian. Haniyeh was then seen arriving at the inauguration ceremony at the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran building, where he sat in the front row.
Shortly before 7 p.m. local time, Haniyeh made his final public appearance at an exhibition at Tehran’s Milad Tower. At 2 a.m. that night, according to the state-run IRNA news outlet, he was killed, with what IRNA described as an “airborne guided projectile.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday: “You killed our dear guest in our home and now you have paved the way for his harsh punishment.”
The killing marked the beginning of an unpredictable new phase in Israel’s war with Hamas, coming just hours after an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, on Tuesday that killed Hezbollah commander Fu’ad Shukr, whom Israel blamed for a deadly attack in the Golan Heights over the weekend.
Israel announced on Thursday (1st) that it had confirmed the killing of Mohammed Deif, head of Hamas’ military wing and one of the main architects of the October 7 attacks last month.
The Israeli military said it killed Deif on July 13 in a raid on Khan Younis. Those same strikes also killed at least 90 Palestinians in the sprawling tent city of Al-Mawasi, Gaza’s Health Ministry said. CNN contacted Hamas to confirm Deif’s death, but received no response.
Haniyeh’s coffin was carried through the streets of Tehran in a procession on Thursday, with thousands of people lining the streets to watch. He will be buried in the Qatari capital Doha on Friday (2).
Source: CNN Brasil
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