Ismail Haniyeh, a top leader of the designated Palestinian terrorist group Hamas who was killed in Tehran on July 31, was a controversial figure whose death could escalate tensions in the Middle East and derail negotiations to end Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip.
Haniyeh was the political chief of Hamas, which has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union. Based in Qatar, he had played a key role in internationally brokered talks on reaching a cease-fire in Gaza.
A U.S.-designated terrorist, Haniyeh was considered a relative moderate within the organization.
Flash Analysis: The Killing Of Ismail Haniyeh
The assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in a posh northern Tehran neighborhood -- only a few hours after the targeted killing of a top Lebanese Hizballah commander in Beirut -- is a major embarrassment for the Islamic republic and its security services. As recently as July 30, the Hamas leader had met with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He was then given a hero's welcome in parliament during new President Masud Pezeshkian’s inauguration ceremony, in which representatives of other Iranian proxy groups in the region were present.
Haniyeh’s assassination also, in effect, eliminates the possibility of a hostage deal between Hamas and Israel in the near future, prolonging the war in Gaza, and dramatically increasing the risk of a wider conflict in the region.
In a swift response, Khamenei promised "severe punishment" for Israel, saying revenge was a "duty." The last time Khamenei used such language was in April when the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel following the assassination of a top Iranian general in Iran’s consulate in Damascus.
A military response by Tehran at this stage seems certain, but the challenge for Khamenei and Iran’s proxies is to calibrate it to avoid an all-out war, something the Islamic republic doesn’t want at this point.
-- Kambiz Fattahi, director of RFE/RL’s Radio Farda
Hamas's military wing is led by Yahya Sinwar, the leader based in Gaza who is considered the mastermind of the group’s attack inside Israeli territory on October 7 that killed more than 1,200 people and sparked Israel's retaliatory invasion of the Palestinian enclave later that month.
Haniyeh, who was born in a Palestinian refugee camp, died at the age of 62. No state or organization has claimed responsibility for his killing, although Tehran has blamed Israel and vowed revenge. While Israel has not commented on the incident, Haniyeh had been high on Israel's hit list since the October attack.
More than 39,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials in the territory, as international calls for a cease-fire have gone unanswered.
Haniyeh, who would have been a top voice in any peace negotiations, was in Tehran to attend the inauguration of Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian, who was sworn in on July 30. The two leaders were pictured together during the visit in photographs released by Pezeshkian's office.
Haniyeh was born in the Al-Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City. His family is originally from an area that is now the Israeli port of Ashkelon, north of the Gaza Strip. The family fled the area during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and moved to Gaza.
Haniyeh joined Hamas as a university student shortly after it was founded in 1987 after the beginning of the First Intifada, which protested Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem.
That year, Haniyeh was arrested and briefly jailed for participating in anti-Israel protests. He also graduated in 1987 with a degree in Arabic literature from the Islamic University of Gaza.
In 1988, Haniyeh was arrested again and jailed for six months, and in 1989 he was sentenced to three years in prison due to his involvement with Hamas.
After his release in 1992, Haniyeh was among hundreds of Hamas members and supporters who were exiled to southern Lebanon. Haniyeh spent a year at the Marj al-Zahour camp before returning to Gaza to become a dean at his alma mater, the Islamic University of Gaza.
When Hamas founder Ahmed Yassin was released from an Israeli prison in 1997, Haniyeh was tapped to head his office and the two developed a close relationship. Haniyeh's prominence within Hamas rose quickly and he was selected to represent the group in the Palestinian Authority, which runs part of the West Bank.
Haniyeh and Yassin narrowly escaped an Israeli air strike in September 2003 that targeted their residence in Gaza City. Yassin was killed six months later by an Israeli air strike.
In the 2006 Palestinian parliamentary elections, Haniyeh headed the list of Hamas candidates.
Under the slogan "change and reform," 76 out of 132 parliamentary seats went to Hamas.
With a majority secured, newly nominated Prime Minister Haniyeh set about forming a government.
Several weeks of negotiations to form a coalition government between Hamas, its main rival Fatah, and other Palestinian groups failed -- largely due to Hamas's refusal to accept conditions set out by the United States, Russia, United Nations, and European Union, which included recognition of the state of Israel.
Shortly after its landslide victory, Hamas said it would not back down from its goal of replacing Israel with an Islamic state and indicated that it would resist negotiations to resolve the long-standing conflict with Israel.
Haniyeh eventually formed a government made up mostly of Hamas members and technocrats.
In presenting his government's plan, Haniyeh also called on the United States and Europe to not carry out their threats to halt aid to the Hamas-led government unless it recognized Israel, renounced violence, and abided by agreements under previous Israeli-Palestinian agreements aimed at a two-state solution.
Haniyeh (bottom left) is seen alongside Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian during his inauguration ceremony in Tehran on July 30.
Haniyeh said that he considered the continuation of the Palestinians' struggle for independence to be a "legitimate right." He also expressed openness to engage in talks with international negotiators to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"Our government will spare no effort to achieve a just peace in the region, end the occupation, and restore our rights," he said, although Hamas remained steadfast in its refusal to recognize the state of Israel.
In June 2007, open violence broke out between Hamas and Fatah, and Hamas took full control of the Gaza Strip. Shortly afterward, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed the Hamas-led government.
The internal conflicts among the Palestinian groups led to the de facto division of control of the Palestinian territories, with the West Bank controlled by the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas in control of the Gaza Strip.
Israel, which had pulled its forces out of the Gaza strip two years earlier, imposed a land, sea, and air blockade on the Hamas-controlled territory that is still in effect.
In 2011, the United States requested that Qatar provide a headquarters for Hamas's political leadership to facilitate communications. Haniyeh moved to Doha in 2016 and the next year replaced Khaled Mashal as the head of Hamas's political office.
The U.S. State Department added Haniyeh to its list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists, a classification Washington said targeted terrorist groups and leaders who threaten the stability of the Middle East.
The State Department noted that Hamas had been designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 1997 and added to the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists in 2001.
In extending the terrorist designation to Haniyeh himself, the State Department explained: "Haniyeh has close links with Hamas’ military wing and has been a proponent of armed struggle, including against civilians. He has reportedly been involved in terrorist attacks against Israeli citizens. Hamas has been responsible for an estimated 17 American lives killed in terrorist attacks."
Following the deadly surprise attack by Hamas on Israeli cities and towns on October 7, Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders appeared in a video in which they thanked God for the attack's success.
Three of Haniyeh's sons -- Hazem, Amir, and Haniyeh -- have reportedly been killed by Israeli air strikes against the Gaza Strip since the Israel-Hamas war began.
Haniyeh is survived by his wife and cousin, Amal Haniyeh, with whom he had 13 children, including eight sons and five daughters.