Tehran
\nHamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed by an explosion caused by a \u201cshort-range projectile,\u201d the country\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed, blaming Israel and the US for the assassination.
\nIn a statement on Saturday, the IRGC, an elite and influential branch of the Iranian military, claimed that the deadly attack on Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this week \u201cwas designed and executed by the Zionist regime and supported by the criminal government of America.\u201d
\nAlthough West Jerusalem has neither confirmed nor denied involvement, Israeli officials have repeatedly vowed to eliminate Hamas\u2019 militants as the bloody conflict in Gaza continues. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Washington was \u201cnot aware of or involved in\u201d the assassination.
\nThe IRGC also said that the investigation found that the \u201cterrorist operation was carried out by firing a short-range projectile with a warhead of about seven kilograms\u201d from outside the house where Haniyeh was.
\nOn Thursday, the New York Times, citing Middle Eastern officials, reported that Haniyeh had been killed by a remotely detonated bomb smuggled into the guesthouse about two months prior to Haniyeh\u2019s death.
\nThe assassination has exacerbated the already fraught security situation in the Middle East. A surprise incursion into Israel by Hamas fighters last October elicited an Israeli ground operation in the enclave that has led to extensive destruction and thousands of deaths.
\nIn reponse to the killing, Iran has vowed to mete out \u201charsh punishment\u201d to Israel, while the Jewish state\u2019s military has been put on high alert to face a potential attack. The US \u2013 Israel\u2019s main ally \u2013 also announced it would send additional military assets to the region.
\nThe previous major escalation between Israel and Iran in April resulted in Tehran launching a missile and drone strike at Israeli targets. Officials in West Jerusalem, however, claim that the damage from the attack was minimal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Tehran Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed by an explosion caused by a \u201cshort-range projectile,\u201d the country\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed, blaming Israel and the US for the assassination. In a statement on Saturday, the IRGC, an elite and influential branch of the Iranian military, claimed that the deadly attack on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":384262,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-422936","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n