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55020 |
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Date: July 31, 2024 at 00:25:58
From: Eve, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh Assassinated in Iran |
URL: https://apnews.com/article/iran-hamas-israel-30968a7acb31cd8b259de9650014b779 |
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Hamas says its leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran by an Israeli airstrike
BY ABBY SEWELL
Updated 2:08 AM EDT, July 31, 2024
BEIRUT (AP) — Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed by an airstrike in the Iranian capital, Iran and the militant group said early Wednesday, blaming
Israel for a shock assassination that risks escalating the regional conflict on multiple fronts.
There was no immediate comment from Israel, which has vowed to kill Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders over the group’s Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel. The
strike came just after Haniyeh had attended the inauguration of Iran’s new president in Tehran, Iran said.
The killing could trigger retaliation against Israel from Iran or its powerful Lebanese ally Hezbollah and prompt Hamas to pull out of months of
negotiations for a cease-fire in Gaza.
Hours earlier, Israel carried out a rare strike in the Lebanese capital Beirut that it said killed a top Hezbollah commander who was allegedly behind a
weekend rocket attack that killed 12 young people in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. Hezbollah said Wednesday that it was still searching for the
body of Fouad Shukur in the rubble of the building that was struck.
The U.S. and other nations had already been scrambling to prevent the Golan Heights strike from spiraling into an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah
when word came of the dramatic assassination of Hamas’ top political leader Haniyeh in Tehran.
There was no immediate reaction from the White House to the killing of Haniyeh.
An Israeli military spokesman declined to comment. Israel often doesn’t comment on assassinations carried out by its Mossad intelligence agency or strikes
on other countries. It has repeatedly vowed to eliminate Hamas leaders wherever they are for the Oct. 7 attack in which Hamas-led militants killed 1,200
people and took some 250 others hostage.
Hamas said Haniyeh was killed “in a Zionist airstrike on his residence in Tehran” after he attended the swearing-in of Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian
on Tuesday, along with other Hamas officials and officials from Hezbollah and allied groups.
“Hamas declares to the great Palestinian people and the people of the Arab and Islamic nations and all the free people of the world, brother leader Ismail
Ismail Haniyeh a martyr,” Hamas said in its terse statement.
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Responses:
[55029] [55021] [55026] |
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55029 |
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Date: July 31, 2024 at 13:06:36
From: ao, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh Assassinated in Iran |
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Great. Let those that want to wage war kill each other. It's far better than
them killing civilians.
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Responses:
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55021 |
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Date: July 31, 2024 at 04:27:07
From: akira, [DNS_Address]
Subject: If Israel did it, assassination provides Netanyahu several benefits |
URL: https://x.com/tparsi/status/1818511438668849329 |
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Mehdi Hasan reposted
Trita Parsi
"A few thoughts on Haniyeh's assassination.
No confirmation yet if it was Israel that killed Haniyeh and if it was through an
airstrike. But if it was, the assassination provides Netanyahu several benefits
beyond the obvious goal to take out Haniyeh in response to Oct 7:
1. It kills the ceasefire talks: Netanyahu has systematically sabotaged
ceasefire talks because ending the war will likely end his political career.
The signal he got from Kamala Harris was that she would not be as
unforgiving as Biden has been of Netanyahu's obstinance. The assassination
buys Netanyahu several weeks, if not months, in which there will be no
serious expectation of a ceasefire deal. Thus, the war will continue, as will
Netanyahu's reign as Prime Minister.
2. It may kill renewed US-Iran diplomacy: Pezeshkian campaigned on a
platform of renewed US-Iran diplomacy. But with tensions heightening
following the assassination, his chances to create a diplomatic opening with
the US have been shut close, at least for now. Israel has opposed US-Iran
diplomacy since the early 1990s, and creating political crises that raise the
cost of starting talks has been the most effective way to prevent diplomacy.
3. It may get Netanyahu the war he's been looking for: The attack has
been deeply embarrassing to Tehran. It has destroyed Iran's claim that it
restored deterrence vis-a-vis Israel following Israel's bombing of Iran's
consulate in Damascus on April 1. It has signaled Iran's allies that they are not
safe - not even in Tehran - and that Iran cannot protect them. Iran is, as a
result, very likely to retaliate. As a result, Netanyahu has likely triggered an
escalatory spiral that can result in a full-scale regional war that likely will drag
the US into it as well. The calculation is that such a war will destroy and/or
degrade many of Israel's enemies and establish a new balance in the region
that restores Israel's dominance and freedom to maneuver. Israel cannot
establish such a balance on its own, but the calculation is that the US can.
4. It corners Kamala Harris: As I mentioned, Harris has signaled that she
will adopt a tougher line against Netanyahu. But if Netanyahu manages
to start a regional war before she potentially becomes President, Netanyahu
will not only have forced the US into the war but also cornered Harris and
removed her ability to adopt a tougher line against Israel. Biden voluntarily
(and foolishly) bear-hugged Biden. Through the assassination and its
consequences, Netanyahu may be able to forcof takinge Harris to bear hug
him.
As a reminder: If Biden had forced a ceasefire
early on, all of this - including the risk of the US getting dragged into another
senseless war in the Middle East - would have been avoided."
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Responses:
[55026] |
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55026 |
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Date: July 31, 2024 at 07:57:09
From: akira, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Haniyeh was a central figure in negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire... |
URL: https://x.com/jeremyscahill |
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jeremy scahill
@jeremyscahill
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6h
Haniyeh was a central figure in negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire. Israel has
been pushing a line that its massive use of force in Gaza and assassinations
of Hamas leaders would bring Hamas to its knees.
Israel has sent a message that it speaks with the language of force above all
else. Its actions are likely to encourage deeper collaboration among Axis of
Resistance forces and Palestinian factions. Amidst the genocide in Gaza, the
past 48 hours bring a new phase to this war.
Supreme Leader of Iran Khamenei says Iran will respond to Haniyeh
assassination:
“The criminal, terrorist zionist entity has brought upon itself the severest
punishment with this attack. Avenging the blood of Haniyeh is Iran's duty
because he was martyred on our land.”
It is highly likely the US was (at minimum) aware of Israel’s assassination plan
against Haniyeh in Tehran. The question is what the US sees as the likely
outcome/response.
The US has been claiming it believes a Gaza ceasefire is within reach,
despite the statements to the contrary by Israel & Hamas. Assassinating
Haniyeh may be seen in DC as Israel achieving enough of a victory to agree
to a ceasefire. This is an extremely dangerous calculation.
Hamas is not going to surrender because Haniyeh was assassinated. The
Palestinian armed resistance movements are not inspired by or run by one
individual.
Israel has proven it can kill massive numbers of Palestinian civilians and
assassinate political leaders. Yet it has been unable to defeat an armed
insurgency in Gaza that manufactures its own weapons and operates under
constant attack from U.S. weapons and a modern military.
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Responses:
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