Iran’s Ayatollah wept over the coffin of his murdered Hamas ally Ismail Haniyeh, just hours after ordering a revenge attack on Israel.
The dictator led a funeral prayer for the terrorist group’s political chief after Israel bombed him while he slept in a secure military compound.
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The Supreme Leader wept as he stood next to the coffins of his slain ally and bodyguard as a crowd chanted “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.”
Hundreds of men stood close to the autocrat and prayed for him to pay homage inside the gigantic mosque.
Outside, women raised their hands in prayer, images released by the Supreme Leader’s office showed.
The funeral took place just hours after Khamenei promised revenge and issued an order for a “direct attack on Israel”.
He said: “Revenge is our duty and Israel has prepared a severe punishment for itself by killing a dear guest in our home.”
He previously said Iran had a “duty to avenge” the murder and promised to “severely punish the Zionist entity.”
Thousands also took to the streets in Tehran to pay tribute to the man seen as the overall head of Hamas.
A truck with the image of the murdered leader passed through a crowd in the city.
Haniyeh’s death could also lead Hamas to abandon negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in the 10-month war in Gaza, which US mediators said were making progress.
Haniyeh, who lives in Qatar, has been the tough face of Hamas’ international diplomacy as the group holds Israeli hostages in tunnels beneath Gaza.
The killing inflamed tensions between Israel and Iran, which international diplomats had been trying to contain after a weekend rocket attack by its proxy, Hezbollah, killed 12 children in the Golan Heights.
Haniyeh was in Tehran to attend the inauguration of new Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday.
The Israeli intelligence arm Shin Bet discovered exactly which room Haniyeh was sleeping in, also on the block.
A guided missile was then fired through his bedroom window and detonated inside, killing him and his aide instantly.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his country last night that he had dealt a “crushing blow” with the double murder.
He said challenging days lie ahead for the country as it prepares for a response from its enemies.
“We are prepared for any scenario and will remain united and determined.”
Hamas said Haniyeh was killed “in a Zionist airstrike on his residence in Tehran, after he participated in the inauguration of Iran’s new president.”
The group also promised that Haniyeh’s death “will not go unpunished” and described the attack as a “serious escalation.”
Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking hundreds of Israelis hostage, with 120 believed to still remain in tunnels.
Killing can trigger wider conflicts
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said the killing escalated the “war in Gaza to a regional level.”
They said: “If the international community does not take action to stop Israel, our region will face much greater conflict.”
Turkey’s comments came days after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to invade Israel.
Mohamed al-Hindi, a leading member of the Islamic Jihad terrorist group, told Al Jazeera that the back-to-back killings will spark a wider conflict in the region, AP reported.
He said the killings will bring broader support from regionally aligned groups, including Yemeni, Iraqi and other resistance movements.
Hezbollah said the assassination of the Hamas chief would only “increase the determination and stubbornness of resistance fighters on all resistance fronts.”
Al-Qassam Brigades said Israel “will pay the price for its aggression with its blood.”
Russia initially described the attack as “absolutely unacceptable” and called on the parties to “exercise restraint” and abandon escalation.
But last night former president Dmitry Medvedev said: “a full-scale war is the only path to an unstable peace in the region.”
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said the murder was a “heinous crime” and a “flagrant violation of international and humanitarian law.”
Qatar has been hosting unsuccessful peace talks between Israel and Hamas – but it remains unclear how the death would affect any agreement.
China, however, said it was “deeply concerned” about the possibility of further regional instability.
Israel has not officially attacked Iran since April, when it exploded an air defense system in an exchange of retaliations with the Islamic Republic.
That attack followed Iran’s attack on Israel with more than 300 missiles and drones – Iran’s first direct attack on Israel.
Who was Ismail Haniyeh?
By Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter
Haniyeh, one of the terrorist group’s founding members, steadfastly represented the bloodthirsty clan for decades, even after the deaths of his own children.
The 62-year-old was responsible for conducting Hamas’ political operations from Doha, the capital of Qatar.
Born in a refugee camp in northern Gaza, he led the group during several wars with Israel and served as a key power player for the cult.
In the last ten months, he was responsible for conducting ceasefire negotiations, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the USA.
He survived an Israeli assassination attempt in 2003, before the IDF killed his mentor – Hamas founder Sheik Ahmed Yassin himself – in 2004.
At the time, outside a hospital in Gaza, the man who would become one of Hamas’ top leaders appealed to people not to cry, but to focus on revenge.
In 2006, he was working as the leader of Hamas in Gaza, a position now occupied by Israel’s number one enemy – Yahya Sinwar.
He moved to Qatar in 2017 when he was named the group’s new political leader.
The group was trying to change its image at the time, as it made bids across the international scene to gain more influence.
Haniyeh represented Iranian-backed terrorism in Qatar, Turkey, Lebanon, Iran and Egypt.
His ruthless approach to advancing Hamas’ agenda would even nullify the murder of his own children and grandchildren years later.
In April this year, an Israeli airstrike killed three of Haniyeh’s children and four of his grandchildren.
In June, Hamas said his sister and her family were also killed in an Israeli attack.
Haniyeh simply said at the time: “We will not give in, no matter the sacrifices.”
He added that he lost dozens of family members during the years of war between Hamas and Israel.
The terror chief received news of his children’s deaths during a hospital visit. After hearing the news, he continued to visit the building normally.
Haniyeh spent time in Israeli prisons in the 1980s and 1990s.
In 1988, he was among the founding members of Hamas, working under Yassin.
His assassination constitutes a fundamental blow to Hamas – with leaders dubbing it a “treacherous Zionist attack” on Wednesday morning.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
