Ismail Haniyeh, the chief of the Hamas Political Bureau, has been killed in an attack in Tehran, Iran’s capital, as reported by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Wednesday. The Iranian state-run Press TV confirmed the report.
The IRGC released a statement to Meher News Agency, confirming that Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards died after their residence in Tehran was targeted. “With condolences to the heroic nation of Palestine and the Islamic nation and the combatants of the Resistance Front and the noble nation of Iran, this morning (Wednesday) the residence of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the political office of the Islamic Resistance of Hamas, was hit in Tehran, and following this incident, he and one of his bodyguards were martyred,” the statement read.
Just a day prior to the attack, Iran’s Supreme Leader, Seyyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei, met with Haniyeh. Khamenei shared photos of their meeting on the social media platform X. “Imam Khamenei met with Mr. Ismail Haniyah, head of the political bureau of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas, and Mr. Ziyad al-Nakhalah, the Secretary General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement,” read a post from Khamenei’s office.
Responding to this post, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) commented, “Did someone ask for a photo-op of Iran and the leaders of their proxies? Iran’s Khamenei met with Hamas’ Ismail Haniyah and the Islamic Jihad’s Ziyad-al Nakhalah — two of the terrorist organizations who have been attempting to kill Israelis using weapons made and funded by Iran. We can only assume the topics of conversation included how to spend more Iranian money to kill Israelis while wishing Hezbollah’s Nasrallah could join them.”
Haniyeh, who is primarily based in Qatar, was in Tehran for the swearing-in ceremony of Iranian President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian, according to Press TV.
Earlier in April, Haniyeh’s three sons were killed in an Israeli airstrike. The IDF confirmed their deaths, identifying them as Amir Haniyeh, a cell commander in the Hamas military wing, and Mohammad and Hazem Haniyeh. On April 10, the IDF stated on X, “IAF aircraft struck Amir Haniyeh, a cell commander in the Hamas military wing, and Mohammad and Hazem Haniyeh, both Hamas military operatives, in central Gaza today. The IDF confirms that the 3 operatives are the sons of Ismail Haniyeh, the chairman of Hamas’ political bureau.”
In related developments, the IDF announced the elimination of Fuad Shukr, also known as “Sayyid Muhsan,” Hezbollah’s most senior military commander. According to the IDF, Shukr was a close aide to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and was responsible for multiple attacks on Israel, including the killing of 12 children in Majdal Shams and numerous other Israelis and foreign nationals. Shukr was also credited with managing Hezbollah’s advanced weaponry, including precision-guided missiles, cruise missiles, anti-ship missiles, long-range rockets, and UAVs.
