DOHA: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was buried in Qatar on Friday after his killing in Tehran, an attack blamed on Israel that has heightened regional tensions as the Gaza war dragged on.
Haniyeh was laid to rest in Lusail, north of the capital Doha, following funeral prayers at the Gulf emirate’s largest mosque attended by thousands of people.
Haniyeh, the Palestinian armed group’s political chief, played a key role in mediated talks aimed at ending nearly 10 months of war between Hamas and Israel in the Gaza Strip.
The burial was restricted to a small number of people including one of Haniyeh’s daughters, Sara, who shared a video on social media showing her pouring holy water over a pebble-topped grave before lowering her head to kiss it.
“In this moment, I buried my soul under the dirt and I departed. I departed with all the pain of the world in my ribs,” she captioned the video uploaded on X.
Mourners earlier on Friday lined up inside Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab Mosque, where Haniyeh’s casket, draped in a Palestinian flag, was briefly carried in to the shouts of angry mourners.
Others prayed on mats outside in temperatures that reached 44 degrees Celsius (111 degrees Fahrenheit).
“He was a symbol, a resistance leader... people are angry,” said Taher Adel, 25, a Jordanian student residing in the Qatari capital.
Haniyeh’s predecessor Khaled Meshaal spoke at the ceremony, saying the slain leader had “served his cause, his people... and never abandoned them.”
Turkiye and Pakistan announced a day of mourning on Friday to honor Haniyeh, while Hamas called for a “day of furious rage.”
Many mourners in Doha wore scarves that combined the Palestinian flag with a checkered keffiyeh pattern and the message in English: “Free Palestine.”
Haniyeh and a bodyguard were killed in a pre-dawn “hit” on their accommodation in Tehran Wednesday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said. Haniyeh was in Iran to attend the swearing-in of President Masoud Pezeshkian a day earlier.
Israel, accused by Hamas, Iran and others of the attack, has not directly commented on it.
The killing of Qatar-based Haniyeh is among several incidents since April that have sent regional tensions soaring during the Gaza war, which has drawn in Iran-backed armed groups in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen.
Iranian officials met with representatives of these groups on Wednesday to discuss the next steps, either “a simultaneous response from Iran and its allies or a staggered response from each party,” a source close to Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement told AFP.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met with his visiting British counterpart John Healey on Friday and stressed “the importance of establishing a coalition” to support “Israel’s defense against Iran and its proxies,” Gallant’s office said.
Military chief Herzi Halevi told troops Israel would respond “very strongly” to any attacks, an army statement said.
France urged its nationals visiting Iran to leave “due to the increased risk of a military escalation.”
During the Gaza war, Hezbollah and Israeli forces have engaged in near-daily exchanges of fire, and did so again on Friday.
In Gaza, the civil defense agency reported several people killed in the territory’s north, and Israel’s military said it had killed around 30 militants near Rafah, in the south.
Haniyeh’s assassination came hours after Israel struck a southern suburb of Beirut, killing Fuad Shukr, the military commander of Lebanese Hamas ally Hezbollah.
Haniyeh’s deputy, Saleh Al-Aruri, was killed in Beirut early this year.
On Thursday Israel confirmed the death of Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif in a July strike in Gaza.
Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas in retaliation for its October 7 attack that ignited the war in Gaza.
The attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,197 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Militants also seized 251 hostages, 111 of whom are still held captive in Gaza, including 39 the military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign against Hamas has killed at least 39,480 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, which does not give details of civilian and militant deaths.
The fighting has sparked a dire humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory. On Friday, the UN Satellite Center said nearly two-thirds of the buildings in Gaza, or 151,265 structures, have been damaged or destroyed during the war.
On Thursday, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei led prayers for Haniyeh in Tehran, having earlier threatened “harsh punishment” for his killing.
The New York Times, citing Middle Eastern officials, has reported that Haniyeh was killed by an explosive device planted weeks ago at a Tehran guesthouse.
Asked about the report, Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari told journalists “there was no other Israeli aerial attack... in all the Middle East” on the night of Shukr’s killing in Lebanon.
Israel said Shukr’s assassination — for which Hezbollah said retaliation was “inevitable” — was a response to rocket fire which killed 12 youths last week in the annexed Golan Heights.
Iranian news agency Fars said the US report was a “lie,” insisting that the Hamas leader was killed by a “projectile.”
Analyst Hugh Lovatt said Haniyeh’s killing “will mean that a ceasefire deal with Israel is now totally off of the table.”
The White House said US President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday and affirmed his commitment to defend Israel’s security “against all threats from Iran.”
“We have the basis for a ceasefire (in Gaza)... They should move on it now,” Biden told reporters after the call.
Thousands in Qatar bid farewell to slain Hamas chief
https://arab.news/ytnhw
Thousands in Qatar bid farewell to slain Hamas chief
- Haniyeh had resided in Doha along with other members of the Hamas political office
- Buried at a cemetery in Lusail
Israeli strikes in central Syria kill seven — war monitor
- In the most high-profile attack on Syria since the war in Gaza began, suspected Israeli warplanes bombed Iran’s embassy in April, a strike that Iran said killed seven military advisers, including three senior commanders
DAMASCUS: Israeli strikes in central Syria killed at least seven people late Sunday, including three civilians, a war monitor reported.
Since the start of the civil war in Syria in 2011, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes there, targeting pro-Iranian groups in particular.
“The number of dead in the Israeli strikes on the Masyaf region stands at seven, namely three civilians, including a man and his son who were in a car, and four unidentified soldiers,” said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a vast network of sources inside the country.
The attack also wounded at least 15 others and destroyed military facilities in the area, the Observatory said.
“Thirteen violent explosions rang out in the zone housing scientific research centers in Masyaf where pro-Iranian groups and weapons development experts are present,” the group said in an earlier statement.
The Syrian state news agency Sana had previously reported five killed and 19 wounded near Masyaf, citing a medical source.
“Around 11:20 p.m. (2020 GMT) on Sunday, the Israeli enemy carried out an air attack from the northwest of Lebanon targeting a number of military sites in the central region,” Sana reported, citing a military source.
“Our air defense shot down some missiles.”
Israeli air raids in Syria have intensified since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.
Israeli authorities rarely comment on individual strikes in Syria, but have repeatedly said they will not allow arch-enemy Iran to expand its presence there.
At the end of August, three pro-Iranian fighters were killed in the central region of Homs in strikes attributed to Israel, the Observatory said.
A few days later, the Israeli military said it had killed an unspecified number of fighters belonging to Hamas ally Islamic Jihad in a strike in Syria near the Lebanese border.
US, UK aircraft bomb Houthi-held area as militia claims downing US drone
- A Houthi-run news agency reported the strikes but did not say if there had been any loss of life
- Houthis have targeted over 100 commercial and naval ships in the Red Sea since late last year
AL-MUKALLA: US and UK warplanes have blasted Houthi sites in Yemen’s Ibb province after the Yemeni militia claimed to have shot down a new US drone.
The Houthi-run official news agency reported on Sunday that American and British warplanes carried out three airstrikes on the Maytam region, north of Ibb province, the latest in a series of military operations against the Houthis in response to their attacks on ships.
The Houthis did not provide information on the targeted area in the region, or if there were any human or property damages.
Since early this year, US and UK forces have launched strikes on Houthi-held Yemeni provinces including Sanaa, Saada, Hodeidah, Ibb, and others, targeting missile and drone launchers and storage facilities, as well as explosive-laden drone boats ready to attack ships in international shipping lanes off Yemen.
This comes as Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea claimed on Saturday night that the Yemeni militia had shot down a US military MQ-9 drone engaged in “hostile activities” over the central province of Marib, the eighth such claim since the start of their anti-ship campaign in November.
The Houthis did not immediately publish a video of the operation to back up their claim, something they routinely do hours or days later.
The Houthis earlier claimed to have shot down the same kind of US drone over Hodeidah, Saada, and Marib using locally produced missiles.
Since late last year, the Houthis have launched hundreds of ballistic missiles, drones, and drone boats at over 100 commercial and naval ships in the Red Sea, Bab Al-Mandab Strait, Gulf of Aden, and Indian Ocean, claiming to be acting in solidarity with the Palestinian people against Israel’s war in Gaza.
During their campaign, the Houthis captured one commercial ship, sank two others, and set fire to numerous more.
The Greek-flagged Sounion oil ship carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil is still burning and abandoned in the Red Sea, having been repeatedly struck by Houthi fire.
Rescuers who visited the ship last week determined that it was too dangerous to relocate and looked at various possibilities for defusing the hazard on-site.
At the same time, the EU naval operation in the Red Sea, EUNAVFOR ASPIDES, said on Saturday that its three naval units had defended 230 ships on the major commerce artery, shot down 17 drones, two drone boats, and four ballistic missiles, and rescued 29 sailors since the mission began in February.
In a separate development, the Houthis said on Saturday that lightning bolts had killed 160 people in regions under their control since the beginning of the year, including 22 deaths in strikes during the last two days.
The most recent round of torrential and intense rains, which started in late July, has killed over 100 people, displaced thousands of families, destroyed hundreds of houses, and washed away roads and other infrastructure throughout Yemen, mainly in the country’s central highlands and western coastal provinces.
Meanwhile, heavy fighting between Yemeni government troops and the Houthis has erupted in hilly parts of the southern province of Lahj, killing or injuring numerous combatants from both sides.
Local media reported on Sunday that joint government soldiers from the Security Belt and the Giants Brigades recovered two areas in the Al-Musaymir District of Lahj that had fallen to the Houthis in recent days.
During the fighting, a Yemeni government soldier was killed, as well as an undetermined number of Houthis.
Despite a dramatic decline in hostilities in Yemen since April 2022 under the UN-brokered ceasefire, the Houthis have continued to wage lethal attacks on government soldiers in Taiz, Lahj, Dhale, and Marib.
Iraq, US agree on phased pullout of coalition troops
- Pullout to be completed from Bagdad and other parts of federal Iraq by September 2025 and from Kurdistan by September 2026, says Iraq defense chief
- The US has some 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria as part of the international coalition against the Daesh group
BAGHDAD: Iraq and the United States have agreed on a phased pullout of the US-led anti-jihadist coalition but have yet to sign a final agreement, the Iraqi defense minister said Sunday.
The US has some 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria as part of the international coalition against the Daesh group.
They have been engaged in months of talks with Baghdad on a withdrawal of forces, but fell short of announcing any timeline so far.
On Sunday, Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet Al-Abbassi told pan-Arab television channel Al-Hadath that the coalition would pull out from bases in Baghdad and other parts of federal Iraq by September 2025 and from the autonomous northern Kurdistan region by September 2026.
The pullout is “two-phased” and “maybe we will sign the agreement within the next few days,” Abbassi said.
He added that US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin had said in a meeting that “two years were not enough” to carry out the withdrawal.
“We refused his proposal regarding an (extra) third year,” Abbassi said.
Coalition forces have been targeted dozens of times with drones and rocket fire in both Iraq and Syria, as violence related to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza since early October has drawn in Iran-backed armed groups across the Middle East.
US forces have carried out multiple retaliatory strikes against these groups in both countries.
The Daesh group seized parts of Iraq and Syria in 2014, and was defeated by Baghdad three years later and in Syria in 2019.
But jihadist fighters continue to operate in remote desert areas although they no longer control any territory.
Iraqi security forces say they are capable of tackling Daesh remnants unassisted, as the group poses no significant threat.
Israeli strikes in central Syria kill seven: war monitor
- In the most high-profile attack on Syria since the war in Gaza began, suspected Israeli warplanes bombed Iran’s embassy in April, a strike that Iran said killed seven military advisers, including three senior commanders
DAMASCUS: Israeli strikes in central Syria killed at least seven people late Sunday, including three civilians, a war monitor reported.
Since the start of the civil war in Syria in 2011, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes there, targeting pro-Iranian groups in particular.
“The number of dead in the Israeli strikes on the Masyaf region stands at seven, namely three civilians, including a man and his son who were in a car, and four unidentified soldiers,” said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a vast network of sources inside the country.
The attack also wounded at least 15 others and destroyed military facilities in the area, the Observatory said.
“Thirteen violent explosions rang out in the zone housing scientific research centers in Masyaf where pro-Iranian groups and weapons development experts are present,” the group said in an earlier statement.
The Syrian state news agency Sana had previously reported five killed and 19 wounded near Masyaf, citing a medical source.
“Around 11:20 p.m. (2020 GMT) on Sunday, the Israeli enemy carried out an air attack from the northwest of Lebanon targeting a number of military sites in the central region,” Sana reported, citing a military source.
“Our air defense shot down some missiles.”
Israeli air raids in Syria have intensified since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.
Israeli authorities rarely comment on individual strikes in Syria, but have repeatedly said they will not allow arch-enemy Iran to expand its presence there.
At the end of August, three pro-Iranian fighters were killed in the central region of Homs in strikes attributed to Israel, the Observatory said.
A few days later, the Israeli military said it had killed an unspecified number of fighters belonging to Hamas ally Islamic Jihad in a strike in Syria near the Lebanese border.
Algeria’s president joins opponents in claiming election irregularities after being named the winner
Algeria’s president joins opponents in claiming election irregularities after being named the winner
- The tally reported on Sunday gave Tebboune a total vote share that was far more than the 87 percent that Vladimir Putin won in Russia’s March elections and the 92 percent that Ilham Aliyev got in Azerbaijan’s February contest
ALGIERS, Algeria: After being declared the winner of Algeria’s election, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune joined his two challengers in criticizing the country’s election authority for announcing results that contradicted earlier turnout figures and local tallies.
The claims of irregularities mar what had earlier appeared to be a landslide victory for the 78-year-old head of state.
The country’s independent election authority on Sunday announced that Tebboune had won 94.7 percent of Saturday’s vote, far outpacing his challengers Islamist Abdelali Hassani Cherif, who received only 3.2 percent and socialist Youcef Aouchiche, who got just 2.2 percent.
Hours later, Tebboune joined his opponents in questioning the reported results with the three campaigns jointly issuing a statement accusing the country’s election chairman of announcing contradictory results.
In a country where elections have historically been carefully choreographed affairs, such astonishing questions about irregularities shocked Algerians who expected Tebboune to win in a relatively uneventful fashion.
It’s unclear what will follow all three candidates casting doubt on irregularities and whether they will prompt legal challenges or delay the final certification of the result.
The tally reported on Sunday gave Tebboune a total vote share that was far more than the 87 percent that Vladimir Putin won in Russia’s March elections and the 92 percent that Ilham Aliyev got in Azerbaijan’s February contest.
But efforts from Tebboune and members of his government to encourage voter turnout to project legitimacy appeared to have fallen short, with less than one out of every four voters participating.
Election officials on Sunday reported 5.6 million of the country’s roughly 24 million voters had turned out to vote. Such high abstention rates, which remain unofficial, would surpass the 2019 presidential election when 39.9 percent of the electorate participated.
Officials did not explain why they had earlier announced 48 percent voter turnout at the time of polls closing. Before the three candidates joined in questioning the discrepancy, both of Tebboune’s challengers raised questions about it, citing their own tallies.
Aouchiche called it “strange.” Ahmed Sadok, Cherif’s campaign manager, blasted delays and the way the figure was calculated.
“It’s a shame. It’s an attack on the image of Algeria, which will become the laughing stock of nations,” Sadok said earlier in the day.
He also said there had been a failure to deliver vote-sorting records to the candidates’ representatives and that said the party had recorded instances of proxy group voting and pressure put on poll workers to inflate certain figures.
Claims of irregularities cap off an election season that outraged activists and civil society groups. Human rights advocates railed against the campaign season’s repressive atmosphere and the harassment and prosecutions of those involved in opposition parties, media organizations and civil society groups.
Some denounced this election as a rubber stamp exercise that can only entrench the status quo. Amnesty International last week condemned Algeria’s “brutal crackdown on human rights including the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association in the run up to the country’s presidential elections.”
Before the candidates questioned the results, Tebboune’s supporters and detractors each had drawn conclusions from the results.
Pro-Tebboune university professor Abdellaoui Djazouli said on public television that the result was a resounding endorsement of Tebboune’s program.
“The president has more legitimacy to continue his action to better establish his project for the new Algeria,” he said on public television.
But his runaway victory fueled criticism from pro-democracy activists who have long seen elections as tools that the country’s political elites have used to give off an appearance of popular support.
Many said the loudest message to come out of the election came from those who chose to abstain out of fear that the election would only entrench and legitimize “le pouvoir” — a term used to describe the military-backed elites who run the country.
“The vast majority of the Algerian people have just given ‘le pouvoir’ a lesson in democracy,” said Nassira Amour, a teacher and leading figure from Algeria’s pro-democracy movement.
“The majority did not vote ... This electoral masquerade is a victory for the Hirak,” Amour added, referencing the pro-democracy movement that swept the country in 2019.
That year, after Hirak protesters flooded the streets of Algerian cities, the military ousted President Abdelaziz Bouteflika after two decades in power. The interim government that replaced him heeded calls from military leaders to hold elections later that year, angering protesters who saw expediting elections as a way to calm discontent and sidestep demands for civilian-led, non-military rule.
Tebboune, considered the military’s candidate, won his first-term in a widely boycotted election during which crowds sacked voting stations and police broke up demonstrations. Despite his early overtures and pledges to listen and usher in a “New Algeria,” Hirak protesters continued weekly demonstrations demanding deeper reforms.
Algeria is Africa’s largest country by area and, with almost 45 million people, it’s the continent’s second most populous after South Africa to hold presidential elections in 2024 — a year in which more than 50 elections are being held worldwide, encompassing more than half the world’s population.
