RAMALLAH: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has strongly denounced the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, describing the killing as a cowardly action and a dangerous development, local media reported on Wednesday.
According to the Wafa news agency, he also called on Palestinian people “to unite, be patient and steadfast in the face of the Israeli occupation. He urged Palestinian people to remain united against Israel.
In his reaction, Hamas has vowed to take revenge following its political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran. In a statement, the group said Haniyeh “passed away as a result of a treacherous Zionist attack,”.
Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) had confirmed the martyrdom, adding that the assassination targeting the Hamas’ leader’s residence in Tehran has also claimed the life of one of his bodyguards. He was in Tehran to attend the inauguration ceremony of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
The recent development comes amid Hamas’ all-out efforts to defend Gaza against the genocidal war by the Israeli regime, and the movement’s participation in talks aimed at bringing about a ceasefire to end the brutal military onslaught.
Commenting over the new development, Sami al-Arian, the director of the Center for Islam and Global Affairs at Istanbul Zaim University, told an Arab TV that it is not the conduct of a civilized state to hit people. The expert has described Israel as a “mad dog [that’s] not on [a] leash”, and labelled it a “terrorist rogue state” after Hamas leader’s martyred in Tehran.
Sami al-Arian said, “We’re talking regarding a very significant impact [this assassination] is going to have,”. According to Sami al-Arian, it is a huge escalation – what happened in Lebanon, what’s taking place today in Tehran. Al-Arian called for Washington to “rein in this outlaw state” before situation “really get out of hand”.
