PARIS: France on Friday asked its citizens visiting Iran to leave immediately, after Tehran accused Israel of killing Hamas leader on its soil, sparking regional tensions.
“Due to the increased risk of a military escalation in the region, visiting French nationals still in Iran are invited to leave as soon as possible,” the foreign ministry said.
The killing of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in an attack on Wednesday in Tehran has aggravated fears of a regional conflict.
Tehran, as well as Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah movements, have blamed Israel for the attack, which has not commented. Israel, however, claimed responsibility for the killing of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in suburbs of Beirut.
Meanwhile, hundreds of people gathered at a mosque in Qatar on Friday to bid farewell to the martyred Hamas leader. Haniyeh’s assassination comes almost 10 months into an Israeli military offensive that has ravaged the Gaza Strip.
According to Gaza health ministry Israeli bombardment has killed at least 39,480 Palestinians mostly women and children and wounded 91,128 others.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has issued directives Iran to strike Israel directly, in retaliation for the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, New York Times reported, quoting three Iranian officials, briefed on the order, including two personnel of the Revolutionary Guards.
The Iranian leader gave the order at an emergency meeting of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council on Wednesday morning, shortly following Iranian officials announced that Ismail Haniyeh had been assassinated in Tehran.
Many countries including Pakistan, Turkey, Qatar, China, Russia, Egypt and Jordan strongly condemned the assassination of Hamas leader in Theran, Iran.
