Turkey condemns killing of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry has condemned the killing of Hamas Political Bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in an attack in Tehran and expressed condolences to the Palestinian people.

In a statement issued on X, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said, “We condemn the killing of Hamas Political Bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in a heinous attack in Tehran.”

It said, “We express our condolences to the Palestinian people, thousands of whom, like Haniyeh, have been martyred for living peacefully in their country under the roof of their state.”

It accused the Israeli government of lacking the intention to establish peace. It said the attack was aimed at spreading the war in Gaza to a regional level. It further said Turkiye would continue to support the “just cause” of the Palestinian people.

“The Netanyahu government’s lack of desire to make peace has been exposed once again. This attack is also aimed at spreading the war in Gaza to a regional level. If the international community does not take action to stop Israel, our region will face an even bigger conflict,” Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

So far Israel has not issued any statement on the death of Hamas’ political bureau chief.

Earlier in the day, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said that Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed in an attack in the Iranian capital Tehran, Press TV reported.

The IRGC said in a statement that Haniyeh and one of his/her bodyguards were killed when their home in Tehran was attacked. A projectile hit a residence allocated to war veterans in Tehran at 2 a.m. (local time) on Wednesday, reports Press TV.

In a statement to Mehr News Agency, the IRGC said, “With condolences to the heroic nation of Palestine and the Islamic nation and the fighters of the Resistance Front and the great nation of Iran, this morning (Wednesday) the residence of Ismail Haniyeh, head of the political office of the Islamic Resistance of Hamas, was attacked in Tehran and following the incident, he/she and one of his/her bodyguards were martyred.”

Earlier on Tuesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Sayyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei held a meeting with Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh. Khamenei shared photos of his/her meeting with Haniyeh on the social media platform X.

In a post on Twitter, Khamenei’s office said, “Imam Khamenei met with Mr. Ismail Haniyeh, Head of the Political Bureau of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas, and Mr. Ziad al-Nakhlah, Secretary General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement.”

In response to this post, the Israel Defense Forces wrote, “Did anyone ask to be photographed with Iran and their proxy leaders? Iran’s Khamenei met with Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas and Ziad-al Nakhlah of Islamic Jihad – two terrorist organizations that are attempting to kill Israelis using weapons created and funded by Iran. We can only assume that conversation topics included how to spend more Iranian money to kill Israelis, while also including Hezbollah’s Nasrallah’s desire to join them.”

Qatar-based Ismail Haniyeh was in Tehran to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Iran’s newly elected President Masoud Pezeshkian, Press TV reported.

Earlier in April, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that three sons of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh were killed in an airstrike by the Israeli Air Force on Wednesday.

The Hamas leader’s three sons, confirmed dead by the Israeli military, have been identified as Amir Haniyeh, a cell commander in the Hamas military unit, and Mohammed and Hazem Haniyeh.”

On 10 April, the IDF said on X, “IAF aircraft today struck Amir Haniyeh, a cell commander of the Hamas military wing, and two Hamas military activists, Mohammad and Hazem Haniyeh, in central Gaza. The IDF has confirmed that the three activists are the sons of Hamas Political Bureau chairman Ismail Haniyeh.”

Meanwhile, the Israeli Defense Forces also announced that they had killed Hezbollah’s most senior military commander, Fuad Shukr “Sayyed Muhsan”. According to the IDF, Shukr was the right-hand man of Hezbollah commander Hassan Nasrallah and directed Hezbollah’s attacks on Israel.

The IDF said he/she was responsible for the killing of 12 children in Majdal Shams in northern Israel, as well as numerous Israeli and foreign civilians in recent years. The IDF said Shukar was also responsible for most of Hezbollah’s advanced weapons, including precision-guided missiles, cruise missiles, anti-ship missiles, long-range rockets and UAVs.