World leaders and diplomats condemned the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh Wednesday, expressing concern that his death could lead to further violence in Middle East.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken said the US was “not aware of or involved in” the killing of Haniyeh . “I can’t tell you what this means. I can tell you that the imperative of getting a ceasefire, the importance that that has for everyone, remains,” he said.
China condemned the assassination and warned that it would lead to further instability. “We are deeply concerned this incident may lead to escalation and turbulence in the region,” said Lin Jian, a spokesman for its foreign ministry.
Turkiye’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said the assassination aimed to “interrupt the rightful struggle of Palestinians and demoralise them.” Turkey’s Parliament had planned to host Haniyeh next month, in a direct response to the address to the US Congress by PM Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel last week.
Kremlin, which has also hosted Hamas leaders, called for restraint. “There is no doubt the killing of Ismail Haniyeh will have an extremely negative impact on the progress of mediated contacts between Hamas and Israel,” said a foreign ministry spokesman.
Diplomats in Persian Gulf states blamed Israel for the assassination, warning it could destabilise the region. Oman described the assassination as a “flagrant violation of international law”. Jordan said Israel’s aggression “will drag the region toward more wars and destruction.”