Haniyeh's funeral ceremony begins in Tehran

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) – The funeral ceremony for Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the Palestinian Hamas group’s political bureau, began early Thursday in the Iranian capital of Tehran, with a large number of people and officials participating, including Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, local media reported.

The Iranian Mehr News Agency released a short video of the funeral ceremony, which featured Hamas top figures.

According to the official IRNA news agency, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will lead the funeral prayers.

On Wednesday morning, Hamas and Iran announced the assassination of Haniyeh in an Israeli airstrike targeting his residence in Tehran, a day after he attended the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Though Israel has remained silent about Haniyeh's death, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hinted at Tel Aviv's involvement in his assassination.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

At least 39,445 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 91,000 injured, according to local health authorities.

Nearly 10 months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.