Washington, 1 August 2024 (TDI): US President Joe Biden has said that the killing of Palestinian Islamist group Hamas’ leader Ismail Haniyeh was not helpful for reaching a ceasefire in Israel’s war in Gaza.
There has been an increased risk of an escalation into a broader Middle East war after the assassination of Haniyeh in Tehran drew threats of retaliation against Israel.
Hamas and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards confirmed the assassination of Haniyeh, who had participated in internationally-brokered indirect negotiations on reaching a ceasefire in Gaza.
Anxious residents in Israeli-besieged Gaza feared that Haniyeh’s death on Wednesday would prolong the war.
“It doesn’t help,” Biden told journalists late on Thursday, when asked if Haniyeh’s assassination ruined the chances for a ceasefire deal.
Biden also said he had a direct talk with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier on Thursday.
Israel’s tensions with Iran and Hezbollah have fanned fears of a broader conflict in a region already on edge amid Israel’s assault on Gaza which has martyred tens of thousands and caused a humanitarian crisis.
The Gaza health ministry says that since then Israel’s military assault on the Hamas-governed enclave has killed nearly 40,000 Palestinians while also displacing about the entire population of 2.3 million, causing a hunger crisis and leading to genocide accusations that Israel denies.
