ISTANBUL
Washington was “not aware of or involved in” the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken claimed on Wednesday.
Washington’s statement came hours after Haniyeh was assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran.
“It’s very hard to speculate, and I’ve learned over many years never to speculate on the impact one event may have on something else,” said Blinken.
He was responding to questions by Singapore-based broadcaster CNA whether Haniyeh’s assassination was going to impact how Israel’s war on Gaza progresses.
Blinken, however, stressed the importance of getting a cease-fire in the besieged Palestinian enclave as the war goes on for 10 months.
The top US diplomat is on a two-day visit to Singapore.
Hamas said earlier on Wednesday that Haniyeh, the head of its political bureau, was killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting his residence in the Iranian capital.
It called the assassination a “treacherous Zionist raid.”
The slain Palestinian leader had participated in the inauguration ceremony of Iran’s new president on Tuesday, before he was assassinated.
Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also confirmed the incident.
There has been no announcement by Israel on the incident.
According to the Iranian Mehr News, the assassination took place at around 2 a.m. local time (2230GMT Tuesday).
Haniyeh was “stationed in one of the residences for war veterans in the north of Tehran,” it reported.
The Palestinian leader was “martyred after a projectile hit his place of residence,” the report added.
