According to a Fox News report, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran on Wednesday. Now, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is vowing revenge on those responsible.
“The criminal and terrorist Zionist regime martyred our dear guest in our home and made us sad, but it also prepared a harsh punishment for itself,” Khamenei said on his website.
“Martyr Haniyeh was willing to sacrifice his honorable life in this dignified battle for many years,” he added. “He was prepared for martyrdom and had sacrificed his children and loved ones on this path. He was not afraid of being martyred on the path of God and in order to save the lives of God’s servants. However, following this bitter, tragic event which has taken place within the borders of the Islamic Republic, we believe it is our duty to take revenge.”
Haniyeh was in Tehran for Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s swearing-in on Tuesday.
From Fox News:
Iran’s government has announced three days of mourning following the assassination.
Khamenei had posted Tuesday morning on the social media platform X that he met with Haniyah and Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement Secretary General Ziyad al-Nakhalah.
Iran did not provide any details on how Haniyeh was killed. The incident is under investigation.
Nobody immediately took responsibility for the assassination, but Israel was quickly blamed after pledging to kill Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders over the terrorist group’s Oct. 7 attack on the Jewish State, which killed 1,200 people and roughly 250 others were abducted.
While Israel did not immediately comment, it usually does not make public statements on assassinations carried out by its Mossad intelligence agency.
This story is developing…
Iranian Leader Khamenei says it's a 'duty to take revenge' after Haniyeh assassination https://t.co/95IgsLVD4N
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 31, 2024