Iran’s Khamenei promised punishment for Israel after Haniyeh’s assassination

The Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, has threatened the Israel nation with very severe consequences after Iranians assassinated Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. 

In a statement on Wednesday, Khamenei labeled the killing as a heinous crime by the ‘criminal and terrorist Zionist regime’. The latter called consequently the assassination of Ms. Haniyeh, who was in Tehran to attend the inauguration of President Masoud Pezeshkian, a requital for which a deserving reaction had to be prepared. 

Another rant from their Supreme Leader: “The criminal and terrorist Zionist regime martyred our dear guest in our house and made us bereaved,” Khamenei said. “It also made the context in which it could prepare a severe punishment for itself.” 

Thus, Khamenei guaranteed the Iranian response to the death of Haniyeh and the subsequent event that took place within the territory of Iran. He expressed his deep condolences to the family of Haniyeh as well as the Palestinian nation, whereas Iran’s authorities stated three-day mourning for Haniyeh. 

 A funeral is to be held for Haniyeh in Iran this Thursday, and after the funeral service, his body will be flown to Doha, Qatar. Hamas said that Haniyeh will be buried in the Qatari capital on the following day, Friday. 

Surprisingly, Israel has not said anything about the killing by its officers. However, after the attack by the Hamas on the south part of Israel on October 7 that led to 1,197 deaths, Israel had declared that Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders would not be spared. The Israeli Ministry of Communications said that ministers and officials in the government have been warned not to speak about Haniyeh’s death. 

The consequences of the attack demonstrate the extent of violent retaliations by Israel towards Gaza, including over 39,400 deaths recorded by Gaza’s Ministry of Health since the start of the hostilities. 

 The reaction of the Iranian president Pezeshkian was to condemn the assassination and declare that Iranian territory will be defended and those behind the act will regret their act of cowardice. IRGC was in harmony with Pezeshkian and described the killers as a ‘Zionist gang of criminals, murderers, and terrorists’ who have no regard to international laws. 

“Without doubt, this crime of the Zionist regime will find terrible and painful retribution from the great and mighty resistance front and specifically from the Islamic Iran,” the statement noted. 

Al Jazeera’s reporting on the assassination was provided by correspondent Ali Hashem from Beirut, and he pointed out major repercussions of the assassination for the region, arguing that Iran’s response could provoke additional escalation. 

“The consequences are going to be large for the whole area; this can actually mean an Iranian attack on Israel,” Hashem said. 

This comes after the previous escalations in April where Israel hit Iran’s consulate in Damascus and killed 13 people, among them an IRGC commander. A brutal response was filmed with Iranian missiles and drones targeting Israeli territory, which indicates the conflict’s highly contagious and unpredictable character in the future after Haniyeh’s elimination.