Barran Press
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared a day of mourning and ordered flags to be flown at half-mast on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, following the assassination of former Prime Minister and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
While Tel Aviv remained silent, both Hamas and Iran confirmed Haniyeh's death in an Israeli airstrike targeting his residence in Tehran. The attack occurred just a day after Haniyeh attended the inauguration of Iran's new president, Ebrahim Raisi, according to Turkish news agency Anadolu.
The official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported, "President of the State of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas today, Wednesday, announced mourning and the flying of flags at half-mast for one day, in mourning for the assassination of former Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh."
Earlier on Wednesday, the agency quoted Abbas as strongly condemning Haniyeh's assassination, calling it a "cowardly act" and a "dangerous development."
Abbas urged "the Palestinian people and their forces to unite, be patient, and stand firm in the face of the Israeli occupation."
Haniyeh served as Prime Minister after Hamas won the Palestinian legislative elections in 2006. However, he was dismissed on June 14, 2007, due to the ongoing conflict between Fatah and Hamas.
In May 2017, Haniyeh was elected as the head of Hamas' political bureau, succeeding Khaled Meshaal. He was re-elected for a second term in 2021, a term that was set to expire in 2025.
Since its founding in 1987 to resist the occupation, Israel has assassinated numerous prominent Hamas leaders, including Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi, Salah al-Arouri, Ahmed al-Jabari, and Salah Shehada.
Haniyeh's assassination comes amidst Israel's ongoing war on the Gaza Strip, supported by the United States, which began on October 7th. The war has resulted in over 130,000 Palestinian casualties, mostly children and women, and over 10,000 missing.
Simultaneously with its devastating war on Gaza, Israel has escalated its attacks in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, killing 594 Palestinians, injuring 5,400, and arresting 9,870, according to official Palestinian figures.