Iran Hamas reports killing of its foreign chief Hanija in Tehran

According to the Islamist terrorist organization, the foreign head of Hamas, Ismail Haniya, was killed in an Israeli attack in the Iranian capital Tehran. He was killed as a result of an attack on his residence, Hamas announced.

There was initially no confirmation from the Israeli side.

The news of Haniya's killing came a few hours after an Israeli airstrike on a suburb of the Lebanese capital Beirut. According to the Israeli army, Fuad Shukr, a senior commander of the Shiite militia Hezbollah, was killed. Hezbollah is allied with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, both of which are in turn allied with Israel's arch-enemy Iran.

Since the terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas and other groups on October 7, Hezbollah has been attacking targets in northern Israel in solidarity with Hamas. It does not intend to stop its attacks until a ceasefire is reached in Gaza.

According to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), one of Hanija's bodyguards was also killed. The cause and extent of the incident is being investigated and the results will be announced later, Iran's elite armed forces announced early this morning.

Before his death, Haniya had taken part in the swearing-in ceremony of the new Iranian President Massud Peseshkian, Hamas announced on its Telegram channel.

The 69-year-old Peseshkian, who is considered a moderate, was sworn in at the parliament in Tehran and thus officially took office as the ninth president of the Islamic Republic. According to Iranian sources, high-ranking representatives from 86 countries took part in the swearing-in ceremony. Most Western countries had neither congratulated Peseshkian on his election victory nor were their representatives on the parliamentary guest list.