Ismail Haniyeh,  a prominent Palestinian political leader and the head of Hamas’ political bureau, was assassinated in Tehran in an Israeli airstrike on Wednesday.

Haniyeh was in the Iranian capital for the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. 

Both Hamas and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard confirmed his death and announced ongoing investigations into the incident.

A Palestinian Refugee

Ismail Abdel Salam Ahmed Haniyeh was born on January 23, 1962, in the Shati refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. 

His family originated from the village of Al-Jura, near the city of Asqalan, which was mostly destroyed and completely ethnically cleansed during the Nakba in 1948.

Haniyeh completed his early education in United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) schools and graduated from Al-Azhar Institute before earning a BA in Arabic Literature from the Islamic University of Gaza in 1987. 

The head of Hamas' political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated by an Israeli strike in Tehran.

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During his university years, he was active in the Student Union Council and later held various positions at the Islamic University, eventually becoming its dean in 1992. 

Following his release from an Israeli prison in 1997, Haniyeh became the head of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin’s office.

Political Life

Haniyeh’s political experience includes multiple arrests by Israeli authorities during the First Intifada, with charges related to his involvement with the Palestinian Resistance movement Hamas. 

He was exiled to southern Lebanon in 1992 but returned to Gaza after the Oslo Accords. 

Haniyeh led the ‘Change and Reform List’, which won the majority in the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council elections, leading to his appointment as the head of the Palestinian government in February 2006.

Despite being dismissed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in June 2007 after Hamas’ military wing took control of Gaza, Haniyeh continued to lead the government in Gaza. 

Ismail Haniyeh Assassinated by Israel – What We Know So Far

He later played a role in national reconciliation efforts, which led to the formation of a unity government in June 2014.

Haniyeh was elected head of Hamas’s political bureau in May 2017. 

In January 2018, the US State Department added him to the so-called “terror list”, a move Hamas dismissed as politically motivated.

Al-Aqsa Flood

On October 7, 2023, the Al-Qassam Brigades, led by Mohammed Deif, launched the Al-Aqsa Flood operation against Israel.

In the genocidal Israel war that followed, Haniyeh suffered personal losses, including the killings of several family members due to Israeli airstrikes.

(PC, AJA)