Indonesia strongly condemned the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas’ political bureau, in Tehran, Iran, on Wednesday.
“It constitutes a provocation that could escalate conflicts in the region and derail the ongoing negotiation,” the Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a social media post on Wednesday.
The Palestinian organization earlier confirmed that Haniyeh was killed early Wednesday in an Israeli attack on his residence in Tehran.
“The Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas expresses condolences to the sons of our great Palestinian people … Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the movement … was killed as a result of a treacherous Zionist attack on his residence in Tehran,” Hamas said on Telegram.
It informed that Haniyeh was in Iran’s capital to attend the inauguration of Masoud Pezeshkian as Iran’s new president on Tuesday.
Haniyeh’s assassination was swiftly condemned by the international community. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that the assassination was a “cowardly and dangerous” act.
Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Haniyeh’s assassination was a “despicable attempt to undermine the Palestinian cause.”
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said that the attack was unacceptable and could lead to further escalation. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry also shared a similar message, saying that it could “undermine the chances of peace.”
However, Israel, who has been accused of perpetrating the assassination, has made no immediate announcement about it. US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has claimed that Washington was “not aware of or involved in” the assassination of the Hamas top brass.
Meanwhile, the Iranian state television that reported Haniyeh’s death said that an investigation into the assassination is ongoing and that the results will be announced soon.