Hamas leader killed in alleged Israeli airstrike

Hamas's top political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, has been killed in Iran, the group confirmed on Wednesday. Iran's Revolutionary Guards reported that Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards were "assassinated" in Tehran, according to Iranian state media.

Hamas stated that Haniyeh was killed in "a treacherous Zionist raid on his residence in Tehran." The assassination is a "cowardly act that will not go unpunished," said senior Hamas official Moussa Abu Marzouk, as reported by Hamas-run Al-Aqsa TV.

Haniyeh was in Iran for the swearing-in ceremony of the country's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian. The Revolutionary Guards said the cause of his death is under investigation and will be announced soon. Hamas later claimed Haniyeh was killed in an airstrike and blamed Israel.

While no one immediately claimed responsibility, Israel had vowed to kill Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders after the group attacked Israel on October 7, resulting in 1,200 deaths and 250 hostages. Since the conflict began, more than 39,360 Palestinians have been killed and over 90,900 injured, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.

This incident follows an Israeli military operation in Beirut where the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed to have targeted Fuad Shukr, a senior commander of Hezbollah. The IDF stated Shukr was responsible for the rocket attack on a football pitch in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights that killed a dozen young people. Hezbollah reported that Shukr survived but was critically injured.

[Information sourced from Sky News]