Israeli Defense Minister Katz confirmed the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July via an explosive device.
Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, publicly acknowledged Israel’s role in the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’s political leader, in Tehran earlier this summer. Haniyeh, a key negotiator in indirect ceasefire talks with Israel, was killed by a bomb in the Iranian capital shortly after attending Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s inauguration.
While Israel had previously claimed responsibility for the deaths of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, this is the first confirmation of their involvement in Haniyeh’s death.
Katz’s admission came during a Monday memorial for Israeli security personnel, where he issued a warning to Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
“We have defeated Hamas, Hezbollah, and significantly impacted Iran’s defenses and missile production. We’ve weakened the Assad regime in Syria and struck the ‘axis of evil.’ The Houthis will face the same fate,” Katz stated, as reported by the Times of Israel.
Following the recent collapse of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government after attacks by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other groups, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attributed this to IDF strikes on Syria and Iran.
Katz threatened further action against the Houthis, stating that Israel will “target key Houthi infrastructure and eliminate their leaders, just as we did with Haniyeh, Sinwar, and Nasrallah.”
“Any attack on Israel will be met with swift and decisive retaliation,” he added.
Following Haniyeh’s death, Iran accused Israel of orchestrating the assassination and vowed retaliation. This led to over 180 Iranian ballistic missiles being fired at Israeli targets in October.
The latest Houthi attack involved a missile breaching Israeli defenses and striking a Tel Aviv park, injuring over a dozen people.