Iran has threatened Israel with “harsh punishment” because it believes Israel is to blame for the assassination of Hamas’s leader on Wednesday.Regarding the attack that killed Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran early on Wednesday, Israel has not made any direct comments.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, asserted that his nation had dealt “crushing blows” to its adversaries recently, citing the assassination of a top Hezbollah commander in Lebanon just hours before the Tehran attack.He issued a warning to Israelis, saying that “challenging days lie ahead,” as concerns about a wider Middle East conflict intensify.
He said in a televised speech, “Since the strike in Beirut there are threats surrounding from all directions.”
“Iran swears retaliation following the death of the Hamas leader in Tehran”
“We will stand united and determined against any threat, and we are prepared for any scenario.”
Antonio Guterres, the secretary general of the UN, issued a warning about a “dangerous escalation” of hostilities in the area. To discuss the situation, the UN Security Council was scheduled to convene on Wednesday evening.
The armed wing of Hamas declared that Haniyeh’s passing would “take the battle to new dimensions” and have significant effects. Haniyeh was widely considered as the group’s overall leader.On October 7, the group attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people. Israel has promised to destroy Hamas after the attack.
After attending Masoud Pezeshkian’s inauguration as Iran’s new president in Tehran, Haniyeh—who was instrumental in the negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza—was assassinated a few hours later.The BBC was informed by a top Hamas official that Haniyeh’s previous stays in Iran were shared with the killers.
They said that he was in the same building as three Hamas leaders and several guards.Senior Hamas official Khalil Al-Hayya claimed at a press conference that Haniyeh was struck “directly” by a missile, citing eyewitnesses who were present.Top Hamas officials told the BBC that the group’s leadership is now in “a state of shock.”
Israel announced that it had killed senior Hezbollah member Fuad Shukr in Beirut, hours before Haniyeh was targeted.
Twelve people were killed by a rocket attack in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Saturday, and Israel believes that he was the cause. Hezbollah has refuted any participation.The organisation supported by Iran verified that Shukr’s body was discovered among the wreckage of the hit residential building. Two children and four other people were slain.Hezbollah will almost certainly respond. The heavily armed, Iranian-backed group has previously attacked Israel with rocket barrages in retaliation for the deaths of senior members.
Due to “rising tensions,” the US has updated its travel advisory for citizens, advising them not to travel to Lebanon. Similarly, the UK foreign secretary has urged citizens to depart the country.
While flights to Tel Aviv are expected to be suspended by United, Delta, and British Airways, several airlines have cancelled their flights to Beirut.
BBC
