US President Joe Biden said on Thursday that the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh would not help Israel’s efforts to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza war.
Haniyeh’s assassination in Iran has sparked threats of retaliation against Israel, raising the risk of escalation into a wider Middle East war.
Hamas and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps confirmed the death of Haniyeh, who was taking part in internationally brokered indirect talks to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
Anxious residents of the Israeli-besieged Gaza Strip fear Mr Haniya’s killing on Wednesday will prolong the war.
Iranian authorities said he was killed just hours after attending the inauguration of the new president.
Asked by reporters late Thursday whether Haniyeh’s assassination had undermined the possibility of a ceasefire agreement, Biden said it “doesn’t help anything.”
Biden also said he spoke in person with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu early Thursday.
Netanyahu’s government has not claimed responsibility for the attack but Israel, which has recently dealt devastating blows to Iranian proxies including Hamas and Lebanon-based Hezbollah, has said it would respond strongly to any attack.
Tensions between Israel, Iran and Hezbollah have stoked fears of escalating conflict in a region already on edge after Israel’s offensive into Gaza has killed tens of thousands and sparked a humanitarian crisis.
The latest bloodshed in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict began on October 7 when the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas attacked Israel, leaving 1,200 people dead and about 250 taken hostage, according to an Israeli tally.
Gaza’s health ministry says Israeli forces have since attacked the Hamas-ruled enclave, killing some 40,000 Palestinians, forcing the displacement of almost all of its 2.3 million residents, sparking a famine crisis and leading to accusations of genocide that Israel denies.
The United States has denied involvement in Haniya’s killing.
