The assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was reportedly carried out in Tehran this week using an explosive device that had been hidden months ago in a guesthouse where Haniyeh was staying.
The bomb was eventually detonated by remote control at about 2 a.m. local time on Wednesday, killing Haniyeh and a bodyguard at a compound guarded by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the north of the Iranian capital, Middle Eastern officials said. He told the New York Times.
Haniyeh was in Tehran on Tuesday to attend the inauguration of Iranian President Massoud Pezechkian. The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital about the report.
An official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The New York Times that the explosives were planted in the room where Haniyeh was staying about two months ago and detonated on Wednesday, when it was confirmed that he was there.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated
Ismail Haniyeh, head of Hamas’ Doha, Qatar-based political bureau, spoke to reporters after meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdullahian in Tehran on March 26, 2024. (AFP via Getty Images)
Haniyeh had stayed at the guesthouse several times during previous visits to Tehran, adding that Israeli intelligence officials had briefed U.S. and other Western government officials about the operation shortly after it was carried out.
Israel has not publicly claimed responsibility for the killing, but Iran and Hamas have accused the Jewish state of being behind it, according to the Associated Press.
Three Iranian officials separately told The New York Times that the security breach that led to the explosive device entering the compound where Haniyeh lived – used by guards for secret meetings and to host prominent figures – was a major embarrassment for the military institution.
Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei orders ‘direct’ attacks on Israel: Report
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (centre) prays at the coffins of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and his bodyguard, who were killed on Wednesday in an assassination blamed on Israel. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via The Associated Press)
It is unclear how the bomb became hidden inside the building.
“I’ve seen the report,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday when asked about the matter.
“All I can say is, first of all, this is something we didn’t know about or were not involved in,” Blinken said. “It’s very hard to speculate, and I’ve learned over the years not to speculate about the impact of one event on something else. So I can’t say what this means.”
Iranians follow a truck carrying a coffin (center) during the funeral of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and his bodyguards in the Iranian capital, Tehran, Thursday, August 1. (AP/Vahid Saleemi)
Click here to get the FOX News app
He also said, “A ceasefire in Gaza is essential and remains important for everyone.”
Fox News’ Landon Mion contributed to this report.
