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Burial Ceremony Held for Assassinated Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh in Qatar
The burial of Ismail Haniyeh, the commander of Hamas who was recently killed in Iran, is currently taking place in Qatar. The ceremony is marked by significant attendance from notable figures within the Hamas organization.
Funeral prayers for Haniyeh are being conducted at the Imam Muhammed bin Abdul Wahhab mosque, the largest mosque in the country, before he is laid to rest at a cemetery in Lusail, situated north of Doha.
As the plane carrying Haniyeh’s body arrived from Iran, prominent Hamas leaders, including his predecessor Khaled Meshaal, were present on the tarmac at Doha airport to pay their respects.
Haniyeh met his end during a trip to Tehran, where conflicting narratives have emerged regarding responsibility for his assassination. Iranian officials and allies have implicated Israel in the attack, though the Israeli government has yet to officially assume accountability for his death.
In a display of solidarity, Hamas has indicated that “Arab and Islamic leaders,” alongside representatives from various Palestinian factions, will attend the funeral, extending the invite to members of the public as well.
Countries such as Turkey and Pakistan have declared a day of mourning for Haniyeh, while Hamas has called for widespread demonstrations, referred to as “roaring anger marches,” to be held in mosques following Friday prayers as a form of protest against his killing.
Meanwhile, during a separate ceremony in Tehran, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei promised that Israel would face “harsh punishment” for the assassination, intensifying the ongoing tensions in the region.
Having resided in Doha since 2019, Haniyeh was central to facilitating indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel regarding a potential ceasefire linked to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The talks had reportedly involved high-ranking officials from intelligence agencies, including those from the CIA, Mossad, Egypt, and Qatar.
Haniyeh’s death comes at a time when regional tensions are heightened, particularly after a deadly strike in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights that resulted in the deaths of 12 children and teenagers. Israel accused Hezbollah of the attack and vowed to respond severely, while Hezbollah denied involvement.
In a swift series of events, prominent Hezbollah leader Fuad Shukr was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut days later, alongside four other individuals, including two children, complicating the narrative of reprisals and retaliatory actions in the area.
The assassination of Haniyeh occurred during his attendance at the inauguration of Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian. Despite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserting that Israel had delivered “crushing blows” to Iranian proxy forces, there has been no formal claim of responsibility for Haniyeh’s death.
A high-ranking Hamas official revealed to sources that Haniyeh was killed in the same building that was used during his previous stays in Iran, accompanied by three other Hamas leaders and a number of security personnel. However, details concerning the circumstances of his assassination remain murky.
Top Hamas officials characterized the aftermath of Haniyeh’s killing as a moment of shock for the organization’s leadership. Khalil al-Hayya, a senior figure within Hamas, alleged that a missile had struck Haniyeh directly, based on accounts from witnesses present at the scene. However, a report by the New York Times suggests that the fatality was caused by a bomb smuggled into the premises prior to the attack, a claim that has yet to be substantiated by other sources.
The ongoing investigation and varying accounts surrounding the assassination leave many questions unanswered about the future ramifications for Hamas and the broader geopolitical landscape of the Middle East.
Source
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