Reaction to Killing of Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh 

In this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh sits in a meeting with President Masoud Pezeshkian at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
In this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh sits in a meeting with President Masoud Pezeshkian at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
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Reaction to Killing of Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh 

In this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh sits in a meeting with President Masoud Pezeshkian at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
In this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh sits in a meeting with President Masoud Pezeshkian at the presidency office in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Iran on Wednesday, the Palestinian armed group Hamas and Iran's Revolutionary Guards said in separate statements. 

Here are reactions: 

ABDUL SALAM HANIYEH, SON OF ISMAIL HANIYEH: "My father survived four assassination attempts during his patriotic journey, and today Allah has granted him the martyrdom that he always wished for. 

"He was very keen to establish national unity and strived for the unity of all Palestinian factions and we affirm that this assassination will not deter the resistance, which will fight until freedom is achieved." 

IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN NASSER KANAANI: "Haniyeh's martyrdom in Tehran will strengthen the deep and unbreakable bond between Tehran, Palestine, and the resistance." 

QATAR FOREIGN MINISTRY STATEMENT: "Qatar strongly condemns the assassination of Dr. Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and considers this a heinous crime and a dangerous escalation, as well as a major violation of international and humanitarian laws. 

"The foreign ministry affirms that this assassination and Israel's reckless, continuous targeting of civilians in Gaza will push the region into a circle of chaos, as well as limit the prospects of peace." 

DEPUTY RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER MIKHAIL BOGDANOV: "This is an absolutely unacceptable political murder, and it will lead to further escalation of tensions." 

SAMI ABU ZUHRI, SENIOR HAMAS OFFICIAL: "This assassination by the Israeli occupation of Brother Haniyeh is a grave escalation that aims to break the will of Hamas and the will of our people and achieve fake goals. We confirm that this escalation will fail to achieve its objectives. 

"Hamas is a concept and an institution and not persons. Hamas will continue on this path regardless of the sacrifices and we are confident of victory."  

TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY: "We offer our condolences to the Palestinian people who have given hundreds of thousands of martyrs like Haniyeh in order to live in peace in their own homeland, under the roof of their own state. 

"It has been revealed once again that the Netanyahu Government has no intention of achieving peace. 

"This attack also aims to spread the war in Gaza to a regional level. If the international community does not take action to stop Israel, our region will face much greater conflicts." 

MALAYSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY: "Malaysia unequivocally condemns all acts of violence, including targeted assassination, and urges all peace-loving nations to join in denouncing such acts. 

"The incident underscores the urgent need for de-escalation and reinforces the necessity for all parties to engage in constructive dialogue and pursue peaceful resolutions." 

AREEPEN UTTARASIN, VETERAN THAI POLITICIAN AND FORMER GAZA HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR: "The assassination is very serious because it occurred in Iran. It shows that Hamas's opponents can strike anywhere. Assassinating the Hamas leader will make negotiations and de-escalation more difficult. Things will become more violent and the situation will worsen, it will not improve."  



West Bank Palestinians Say Haniyeh Killing Will Not Affect Fight with Israel

(FILES) Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh talks to reporters after his meeting with Egyptian officials in Gaza City, 12 February 2006. (Photo by Mohammed ABED / AFP)
(FILES) Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh talks to reporters after his meeting with Egyptian officials in Gaza City, 12 February 2006. (Photo by Mohammed ABED / AFP)
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West Bank Palestinians Say Haniyeh Killing Will Not Affect Fight with Israel

(FILES) Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh talks to reporters after his meeting with Egyptian officials in Gaza City, 12 February 2006. (Photo by Mohammed ABED / AFP)
(FILES) Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh talks to reporters after his meeting with Egyptian officials in Gaza City, 12 February 2006. (Photo by Mohammed ABED / AFP)

Palestinians in the occupied West Bank condemned the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas who was killed in Iran on Wednesday, but said it would have little effect on the movement.
Israeli officials have not so far claimed responsibility for the killing of Haniyeh, who had been in Tehran for the inauguration of the new Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and there has been no official comment from the government, said Reuters.
But few doubted that Haniyeh, the public face of Hamas who took the top job in 2017, was the latest in a string of Hamas leaders to have been killed by Israel.
"We woke up this morning to a tragedy for the Palestinian people," said Fawzi Nassar, a resident of the southern city of Hebron.
"He is not the first one they assassinated - there were many leaders in the past like Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and others, but that will not affect our steadfastness," he said, referring to the founder of Hamas who was killed by an Israeli helicopter gunship in 2004.
Palestinian factions called for a day of protest and a general strike in the West Bank and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose Fatah faction is a political rival to Hamas, condemned the killing, which Fatah called a "heinous and cowardly act".
Although the West Bank is under the nominal leadership of the Palestinian Authority, run by Fatah, opinion polls show support for Hamas is strong.
"His assassination will not affect the party because the party is not a new one," said Suheil Nasrelddin, a resident of Hebron. "They have a lot of leaders, even the youngest child is a leader."
The West Bank has been in turmoil since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel which sparked Israel's invasion of Gaza, with regular raids by Israeli forces in cities across the area.
Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed, many of them armed militants but also many stone-throwing youths or unarmed protesters and uninvolved civilians.
"The Israeli crime of assassinating Ismael Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, will not break the Palestinian resistance or the Palestinian people's determination to achieve our freedom," said Mustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian politician who heads the Union Of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees.
"Of course it will escalate the situation," he said. "And this is what Netanyahu wants, he knows that the end of this war is the end of his political career."