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BEIRUT (AP) — Hamas person Ismail Haniyeh was killed by a predawn airstrike successful the Iranian superior Wednesday, Iran and the militant radical said, blaming Israel for a daze assassination that risks escalating the struggle adjacent arsenic the U.S. and different nations were scrambling to forestall an all-out determination war. Iran's ultimate person vowed revenge against Israel.
There was nary contiguous remark from Israel, which has pledged to termination Haniyeh and different Hamas leaders implicit the group’s Oct. 7 onslaught connected confederate Israel successful which the Palestinian militant radical killed 1,200 radical and took immoderate 250 others hostage. The onslaught came conscionable aft Haniyeh had attended the inauguration of Iran’s caller president successful Tehran — and lone hours aft Israel targeted a apical commandant successful Iran's state Hezbollah successful the Lebanese superior Beirut.
The melodramatic assassination of Hamas's apical governmental person threatened to reverberate passim the region's intertwined conflicts. Most explosively, the onslaught successful Tehran could propulsion Iran and Israel into nonstop struggle if Iran retaliates.
“We see his revenge arsenic our duty,” Iranian ultimate person Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said successful a connection connected his authoritative website. He said Israel had “prepared a harsh punishment for itself” by sidesplitting "a beloved impermanent successful our home."
Bitter determination rivals, Israel and Iran risked plunging into warfare earlier this twelvemonth erstwhile Israel deed Iran’s embassy successful Damascus successful April. Iran retaliated and Israel countered successful an unprecedented speech of strikes connected each other's soil, but planetary efforts succeeded successful containing that rhythm earlier it spun retired of control.
Haniyeh's sidesplitting could besides punctual Hamas to propulsion retired of negotiations for a cease-fire and hostage merchandise woody successful the 10-month-old warfare successful Gaza, which U.S. mediators had said were making progress.
And it could enflame already heightening tensions betwixt Israel and Hezbollah — which planetary diplomats were trying to incorporate aft a play rocket onslaught that killed 12 young radical successful the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights.
Tuesday evening, Israel carried retired a uncommon onslaught successful the Lebanese superior that it said killed a apical Hezbollah commandant allegedly down the rocket strike. Hezbollah, which denied immoderate relation successful the Golan strike, said Wednesday that it was inactive searching for the assemblage of Fouad Shukur successful the rubble of the gathering that was deed successful a Beirut suburb, sidesplitting 2 women and 2 children, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
There was nary contiguous absorption from the White House to the sidesplitting of Haniyeh.
Asked by reporters successful Manila astir the Tehran strike, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said helium had nary “additional accusation to provide.” But helium expressed anticipation for a diplomatic solution connected the Israeli-Lebanon border.
“I don’t deliberation that warfare is inevitable,” helium said. “I support that. I deliberation there’s ever country and accidental for diplomacy, and I’d similar to spot parties prosecute those opportunities.”
But planetary diplomats trying to defuse tensions were alarmed. One Western diplomat, whose state has worked to forestall an Israeli-Hezbollah escalation, said the treble strikes successful Beirut and Tehran person “almost killed” hopes for a Gaza cease-fire and could propulsion the Middle East into a “devastating determination war.” The diplomat spoke connected information of anonymity to sermon the delicate situation.
An Israeli subject spokesperson declined to comment. Israel often doesn’t remark connected assassinations carried retired by its Mossad quality bureau oregon strikes connected different countries.
Iranian media showed videos of Haniyeh and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian hugging aft Pezeshkian's inauguration ceremonial Tuesday. Hours later, the onslaught deed a residence Haniyeh uses successful Tehran, sidesplitting him, Hamas said successful a statement.
It besides quoted a past code by Haniyeh successful which helium said the Palestinian origin has “costs” and “we are acceptable for these costs: martyrdom for the involvement of Palestine, and for the involvement of God Almighty, and for the involvement of the dignity of this nation.”
Pezeshkian vowed his state would “defend its territory” and marque the attackers “regret their cowardly action.” An influential Iranian parliamentary committee connected nationalist information and overseas argumentation was to clasp an exigency gathering connected the onslaught aboriginal Wednesday.
Hamas' subject helping said successful a connection that Haniyeh's assassination “takes the conflict to caller dimensions and volition person large repercussions connected the full region.” It said Israel “made a miscalculation by expanding the ellipse of aggression.”
Speaking to the AP, a Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri said the nonaccomplishment of Haniyeh won’t interaction the group, saying it had emerged stronger aft past crises and assassinations of its leaders.
Haniyeh near the Gaza Strip successful 2019 and had lived successful exile successful Qatar. The apical Hamas person successful Gaza is Yehya Sinwar, who masterminded the Oct. 7 attack.
In the West Bank, the internationally backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned Haniyeh’s killing, calling it a “cowardly enactment and unsafe development.” Political factions successful the occupied territory called for strikes successful protestation astatine the killing.
In April, an Israeli airstrike successful Gaza killed 3 of Haniyeh’s sons and 4 of his grandchildren.
Meanwhile, Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces, a conjugation of Iranian-backed militias, said that a onslaught Tuesday nighttime connected a basal southwest of Baghdad killed 4 members of the Kataib Hezbollah militia.
The radical accused the United States of being down the strike. Kataib Hezbollah, on with immoderate of the different militias, has successful caller months carried retired attacks against bases lodging U.S. troops successful Iraq and Syria successful retaliation for Washington's enactment for Israel successful the warfare successful Gaza. U.S. officials did not instantly comment.
Israel is suspected of moving a yearslong assassination run targeting Iranian atomic scientists and others associated with its atomic program. In 2020, a apical Iranian subject atomic scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was killed by a remote-controlled instrumentality weapon portion traveling successful a car extracurricular Tehran.
In Israel's warfare against Hamas since the October attack, much than 39,360 Palestinians person been killed and much than 90,900 wounded, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, whose number does not differentiate betwixt civilians and combatants.
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Associated Press writers Amir Vahdat successful Tehran, Iran, David Rising successful Bangkok, and Jon Gambrell successful Ubud, Indonesia, contributed to this report.
