TEHRAN — The Revolutionary Guard of Iran stated that a projectile short-range was behind the death of the political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, accusing the United States of supporting the attack, which he blamed on Israel, Iranian state television reported on Saturday.
The televised statement said a rocket with a seven-kilogram (about 15-pound) warhead was used to target the Hamas political leader’s residence in the capital Tehran on Wednesday, adding that it caused extensive damage but giving no details about the location.
Haniyeh was in Iran to attend the inauguration ceremony of newly elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
“The action was designed and carried out by the Zionist regime and supported by the United States,” the Revolutionary Guard said in a statement, reiterating a call for retaliation.
“The warmongering and terrorist Zionist regime will be severely punished at the right time, place and capacity,” he added.
Israel had pledged to kill Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders over the group’s Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that sparked the war in the Gaza Strip.
The killing has sparked fears of pushing the region into a wider conflict and forcing Iran and Israel into a direct confrontation if Iran retaliates.
In April, Iran launched hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel, which the Jewish state claimed to have intercepted 99%. It came less than two weeks after an alleged Israeli strike in Syria killed two Iranian generals, marking the first time Iran has launched a direct military attack on Israel despite decades of enmity dating back to the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iran does not recognize Israel and supports anti-Israel militant groups, designated as terrorists, such as Hamas and the Lebanese group Hezbollah.
The Guardians repeated that Haniyeh would be avenged and that Israel would receive “severe punishment at the appropriate time, place and manner.”
Israel, which has declined to comment on Haniyeh’s death, did claim responsibility for an attack this week on a Hezbollah stronghold in southern Beirut that killed a senior commander of the Lebanese group.
Source: With information from AP and AFP
