Doha; The funeral of slain Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was held in Qatar in the presence of thousands of mourners amid fears of an escalation of tensions in the Middle East as Israel is preparing for a possible retaliation of the attack in Iran. Thousands including Khaled Meshaal, who is expected to be the new Hamas leader, along with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani attended the funeral ceremony in a large mosque north of capital Doha.
Haniyeh will be buried in a cemetery in the city of Lusail, north of Doha. Also present at his funeral was senior Hamas official Khalil Al-Hayya, members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. Haniyeh's coffin was draped in the Palestinian flag and carried across the mosque past hundreds of people along with the coffin of his bodyguard.
"Our message to the occupation (Israel) today is that you are sinking deep in the mud and your end is getting closer than ever. The blood of Haniyeh will change all equations," senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters by phone as he attended the funeral. Iran and Hamas have both accused Israel of carrying out the attack on Haniyeh, although Israel has not claimed responsibility.
Iran held its own funeral ceremony for Haniyeh on Thursday which was attended by his widow Amal. "Say hello to all the martyrs of Gaza, say hello to the leaders, to all Gaza's martyrs, all the Muslims," Amal Haniyeh said as she mourned beside his coffin.
Haniyeh's death triggers concerns of all-out war
Haniyeh had been the face of Hamas's international diplomacy as war raged back in Gaza and had taken part in the indirect ceasefire talks. He was seen by many diplomats as a moderate compared to the more hardline members of the Iran-backed group inside Gaza, although some Israeli commentators have said he was considered by some on the Israeli side as an obstacle to a deal.
Earlier, senior Hamas official Khalil Al-Hayya said Haniyeh was killed by a missile that hit him "directly" in a state guesthouse where he was staying in Tehran while attending Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian's swearing-in ceremony. It later came to light that the Hamas leader was killed by an explosive device covertly smuggled into the guesthouse months ago, which was detonated remotely, killing one of Haniyeh's bodyguards as well. The attack came hours after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed a senior Hezbollah commander.
The brazen attack on Haniyeh has dealt a critical blow to the Palestinian militant group and exposed the 'catastrophic failure' of Iran's intelligence and security. The United States had earlier said it was not aware of the attempt on Haniyeh's life and neither was it responsible for the attack. However, Israeli officials had briefed the US and other Western governments about the operation in the immediate aftermath of the attack, the New York Times reported citing officials.
Biden says Haniyeh's killing 'not helpful' for ceasefire
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden on Thursday (local time) said Haniyeh's assassination in Tehran was not helpful for achieving a ceasefire in the nearly ten-month-long war between Israel and Palestinian militant group in the Gaza Strip. "It has not helped, That’s all I'm going to say right now," Biden told reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.
This came after Biden's talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where he reaffirmed his commitment to Israel's security against all threats from Iran and its proxies. "The President discussed efforts to support Israel’s defence against threats, including against ballistic missiles and drones, to include new defensive US military deployments. Together with this commitment to Israel’s defence, the President stressed the importance of ongoing efforts to de-escalate broader tensions in the region," read a White House statement.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said its military is on ‘high alert’ and ready to handle any threat, as it announced that an airstrike it mounted last month killed the elusive Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif in Gaza. Hamas has not confirmed nor denied the death of Deif. The twin attacks have nevertheless caused a significant blow to Hamas and the ongoing ceasefire talks.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had ordered a "direct attack" on Israel in retaliation for Haniyeh's death, according to three Iranian officials, following an emergency meeting of Iran's Supreme National Security Council on Wednesday. Two Iranian sources told Reuters that Haniyeh's killing sent shockwaves through Iran's top leadership, who are now deeply concerned that their security forces may have been infiltrated by Israel.
(with inputs from agency)
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