Tensions in the Middle East remain high days after the killing of Hamas politician Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and a key commander of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in Beirut.
Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah have already vowed revenge for the actions on Israel, which has already been in Gaza for nearly 10 months. They also blame the United States for the killings. Follow LIVE updates here.
Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated on July 31 after attending the inauguration of new Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran. The 62-year-old, who lived in Qatar, was head of the political bureau of Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007.
Before Haniyeh’s killing, Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut on July 30. The airstrike also claimed the lives of three women and two young brothers. Israel says Shukr was responsible for the rocket fire that killed 12 youths in the annexed Golan Heights on July 27.
At least 39,550 Palestinians have died in Gaza in the nearly 10 months since Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel on October 7 sparked its latest war.
Find the latest on events in the Middle East
Iran said on Saturday that Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran with a “short-range projectile” fired from outside his home.
In a statement, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard accused Israel of being behind the incident. It also accused the United States of supporting Israel. It also warned that Israel would receive “severe punishment at the right time, in the right place and in the right manner.”
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said it expected the Tehran-backed Hezbollah group to push deeper into Israel and no longer limit itself to military targets. Israel said it killed nine Palestinian militants in two airstrikes on the northern West Bank town of Tulkarem. A local commander was among the dead.
The United States has announced it will send additional warplanes and warships to the Middle East following threats from Iran and its allies Hamas and Hezbollah, Reuters reported. The United States also urged its citizens in Lebanon to leave on “any available ticket,” according to AFP.
The Pentagon said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had approved sending more Navy cruisers and destroyers capable of launching ballistic missiles to the Middle East and Europe.
Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said the U.S. did not believe escalation was inevitable. “I think our message is very direct that we absolutely do not want tensions to escalate and we believe there is a way out here and that is this ceasefire agreement,” Singh said, quoted by Reuters. US President Joe Biden said on Thursday evening that he was “very concerned” about the escalation of violence in the Middle East, adding that the killing of a senior Hamas leader in Iran “did not help” efforts to negotiate a ceasefire in the war between the two countries. Israel and Hamas.
India has urged its Israeli citizens to remain vigilant and respect security protocols amid growing tensions. An advisory issued by the Indian mission in Israel ordered Indians to stay near security shelters and assured them that the embassy was closely monitoring the situation.
On Thursday, the Indian embassy in Lebanon had “strongly urged” Indians to leave the country. Air India also announced on Friday a temporary suspension of flight operations to Tel Aviv until August 8.