One of Hamas' top leaders has been killed in Iran
AFP via Getty Images
- Top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Iran, per Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps.
- Haniyeh was in Tehran for Iran's new president's inauguration. Hamas blames Israel.
- Israel has not claimed responsibility for the attack, though it previously vowed vengeance on Hamas.
Top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh has been killed in Iran, according to a statement from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps early Wednesday.
Tasnim News, an IRGC-linked media channel, posted a statement announcing Haniyeh's death in Tehran on Wednesday morning local time. The New York Times, the Associated Press, and CNN also reported on the killing.
Haniyeh, 62, was the leader of Hamas' political wing. He joined the militant group in the late 1980s.
In a statement published by the Hamas-affiliated Shehab news agency, the group accused Israel of killing Haniyeh in a "treacherous" attack on his residence in Tehran.
Haniyeh was previously in exile in Qatar. He had traveled to Tehran to attend the inauguration of Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran's new president, according to multiple reports.
On Tuesday, Haniyeh had also met with Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, The Times reported.
No party immediately claimed responsibility for the killing.
In October, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, vowed a "mighty vengeance" on Hamas and its leaders for its October 7 attack on Israel, which saw some 1,200 people killed and around 250 people taken hostage.
In May, International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan said in a statement that he would seek an arrest warrant for Haniyeh. Khan collectively accused Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar, Hamas' leader in Gaza, and Mohammed Deif, commander of Hamas' military wing, of war crimes and crimes of humanity on October 7.
When contacted for comment on Iranian state media reports, the Israeli military told CNN they "don't respond to reports in the foreign media."
A White House spokesperson told the outlet it was aware of the reports but declined to comment.
When asked about Haniyeh's death, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters during a press briefing on Wednesday that he had no further information to provide at this time.
Representatives for the Pentagon and the Israel Defense Forces did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
Haniyeh's reported death comes hours after Israel struck the Lebanese capital of Beirut, killing a top Hezbollah commander who it said was responsible for a deadly rocket attack in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights over the weekend.
This story is developing. Please check back for more updates.