ISTANBUL

The body of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh arrived Thursday in the Qatari capital of Doha from Iran and will be buried Friday, according to Qatari media. 

A funeral was held early Thursday in the Iranian capital of Tehran with a large number of mourners and officials participating, including Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, said media reports.

The Palestinian resistance group and Iran announced Haniyeh’s assassination in an Israeli airstrike early Wednesday that targeted his residence in Tehran, one day after he attended the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Though Israel has remained silent about the killing, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hinted at Tel Aviv's involvement in his assassination.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

At least 39,445 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 91,000 injured, according to local health authorities.

Nearly 10 months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.