In a recent funeral ceremony held at Tehran University, led by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, thousands mourned the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader, and his bodyguard. The assassination has been attributed to Israel by Iran and the Palestinian Islamist militant group, stirring fears of a potential large-scale conflict in the region. Images of the funeral were broadcast live by state television, showing mourners attired in black chanting anti-Israel and anti-America slogans.
Haniyeh’s body is set to be transported to Qatar, where he commonly resided, for his burial on Friday. Khalil Al-Hayya, the deputy chief of Hamas in Gaza, addressed the mourners, pledging the resolute unity of Iran, the Axis of Resistance, and the Hamas fighters against Israeli occupation.
Within the context of Middle Eastern politics, the Axis of Resistance label represents an alliance formed over four decades ago, with the aim of pushing back against Israeli and American influence in the Middle East.
After Haniyeh’s murder, which occurred only a few hours post his attendance at the swearing-in ceremony of Iran’s new president, there has been escalating concern over the exacerbating Israel-Hamas tension in Gaza potentially spiralling into a full-fledged war. While Israel hasn’t officially claimed responsibility for the attack, there have been numerous threats of retaliation, escalating tensions in the region.
The armed division of Hamas expressed that this event could significantly alter the course of the battle and produce major repercussions. As a sign of protest, Iran declared a period of national mourning for three days, pinpointing the U.S. as partly responsible due to its support for Israel. The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Akbar Ahmadian, asserted to Iran’s Mehr news agency, a semi-official publication, that every resistance front would avenge Haniyeh’s murder.
The Axis coalition, comprising Hamas, the militant group from Palestine that sparked off the Gaza conflict by besieging Israel on October 7, the Hezbollah entity in Lebanon, the Houthi faction in Yemen, and a number of Shi’ite militarised organisations in Iraq and Syria, is a significant regional force. [Israel at the ready for military counteraction from Iran and Hizbullah following two targeted killingsOpens in new window].
The area is under the threat of escalated strife between Israel, Iran and its surrogate bodies as a result of the assassination of Haniyeh and the elimination of a high-ranking Hezbollah officer on Tuesday resulting from an Israeli assault near Lebanon’s capital, Beirut.
On the 13th of April, in what it claimed to be retribution for the suspected fatal attack on its embassy grounds in Damascus by Israel on the 1st of April, Iran discharged a shower of missiles and drones on Israel, with almost all being intercepted and destroyed.
A female Iranian national, having taken part in a demonstration post the function at the University of Tehran, expressed her desire for payback as Israel was responsible for the death of Haniyeh, considered their guest, to the state-run television network. Quoted from Reuters and AP.