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Haniyeh met with top Iranian officials on eve of his death — ambassador to Russia

He came to Tehran for the inauguration of the new president of the Islamic Republic of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian

MOSCOW, July 31. /TASS/. The head of the political bureau of the Palestinian Hamas movement, Ismail Haniyeh, met with Iran's top officials on the eve of his death, Iran’s ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali has told TASS.

"As the head of the Hamas political bureau and an official guest, he came to Tehran for the inauguration of the new president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian. More than 100 foreign delegations attended this ceremony in Tehran. Mr. Haniyeh was also present there. He met and talked with top Iranian officials and other foreign guests," Jalali said.

The Iranian ambassador recalled that Hamas was a political movement with experience and roots in Palestine and consisted of two main branches - political and military.

"Martyr Ismail Haniyeh was the leader of the political wing of Hamas. He maintained extensive foreign relations with various countries, including Russia. Mr. Haniyeh was a well-known political leader who also held many meetings with Russian statesmen," the Iranian ambassador continued.

He also noted that in previous years, Haniyeh served as prime minister in the Hamas government in Gaza.

"As the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei] stated, the Zionist regime subjected our dear guest to martyrdom in our home, and this has saddened us. We offer our condolences to the family of martyr Haniyeh and to all peoples and countries that support Palestine," the Iranian diplomat concluded.

Earlier, Hamas announced the death of Haniyeh as a result of an Israeli strike on his residence in Tehran, where he took part in the inauguration ceremony of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. The Al Hadath TV channel reported that Haniyeh lost his life to a direct missile strike. He was in his bedroom at the moment of the attack. According to a source of the Al Mayadeen TV channel, the missile was launched "not from the territory of Iran itself" but "from another state." Hamas deputy political bureau chief Mousa Abu Marzook vowed that the assassination would not go unretaliated.

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