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The assassination of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, which Iran has blamed on Israel, has pushed the Middle East to the brink of a regional war read more
 "As Iran vows to punish Israel, slain Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh buried in Qatar")
Hamas deputy leader Khalil al-Hayya leads funeral prayers for the terrorist group's slain chief Ismail Haniyeh in Qatar's capital Doha (Photo: AP)
As the Middle East remains on edge over fears of an all-out war, slain Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh has been buried in Qatar in a private ceremony.
Following a private funeral ceremony attended by Qatar’s king and premier, Haniyeh was buried in the capital Doha, according to CNN.
Haniyeh was killed Tehran in the early hours of Wednesday, according to Iran. He was in Tehran to attend the swearing-in ceremony of President Masoud Pezeshkian and was killed just hours after. Iran and Hamas have held Israel responsible for the assassination.
A day before the funeral in Doha, a procession was held in Tehran in which several thousands Iranians poured on to the streets to mourn for the terrorist leader. Supreme Leader Khamenei led the funeral prayers.
As Haniyeh’s funeral was underway, Hamas called for a “day of overwhelming anger” against Israel. Iran, the principal backer of Hamas, has already vowed to punish Israel and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is reported to have ordered direct attacks on the country. There are fears that the assassination and the expected retaliation may plunge the Middle East into an escalatory spiral that could lead to an all-out war between Israel and Iran — something the two sides have consciously avoided so far.
Qatar’s King, PM attend Haniyeh’s funeral
Qatar’s Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani attended Haniyeh’s funeral.
Qatar hosts the headquarters of terrorist group Hamas in capital Doha. It hosts a retinue of terrorist leaders beside Hamas who run the so-called political operations of the group from Doha.
Hamas deputy leader Khalil Al-Hayya led Haniyeh’s funeral ceremony which was held after Friday prayers, according to CNN.
The funeral was much more subdued that the procession in Tehran as Haniyeh’s family had asked for a relatively private ceremony, according to Arab media.
The ceremony comprised a brief prayer as two coffins, one of Haniyeh and the second of his bodyguard who was killed in the assassination, were laid at the front of a mosque. The coffins were draped in Palestinian flags.
Qatar, along with Egypt, has been facilitating the talks between Israel and Hamas with support from the United States for a ceasefire and hostage release deal regarding the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Now that the principal negotiator, Haniyeh, is dead and the focus is on preventing an all-out war in the region, the fate of the deal is uncertain.
‘Palestinian cause belongs to all Muslims’
Just before the funeral prayers, the imam at the mosque in a sermon said that the Palestinian cause belonged to all Muslims and not just to one ethnicity.
“The Palestinian cause is not a cause of one people or ethnicity, or faction or organization, but it is the cause of a global community, the cause of all Muslims,” said the imam, as per The New York Times.
The newspaper reported that the mourners streamed the mosque, many of whom wore Palestinian clothes.
Among those at the mosque were young men who appeared to be injured and wore patriotic Palestinian items, noted Raja Abdulrahim of The Times.
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English (US) ·