In a stunning revelation, Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed that the Israeli military assassinated former Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this year. The bombshell announcement, made at a defense ministry event on Monday, marks the first public acknowledgment of Israel’s involvement in the July 31 blast that killed Haniyeh at a guesthouse in the Iranian capital.
“We Will Decapitate Their Leadership”
Katz delivered an ominous warning to Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, vowing that Israel would “decapitate their leadership” just as it did with Haniyeh and other senior figures from Hamas and Hezbollah. His chilling remarks underscored Israel’s resolve to strike at its foes across the region.
“We will strike hard at the Houthis … and decapitate their leadership – just as we did with Haniyeh, [Yahya] Sinwar, and [Hassan] Nasrallah in Tehran, Gaza, and Lebanon, we will do so in Hodeida and Sanaa.”
– Israel Katz, Israeli Defense Minister
The Shadow War Intensifies
Haniyeh’s assassination dealt a crushing blow to Hamas, which blamed Israel for the attack but lacked concrete proof until now. The killing of the Hamas chief, who had been leading ceasefire negotiations in Gaza, threatened to derail talks and prompted warnings of retaliation from the group.
Israel’s covert campaign against its enemies has since claimed more high-profile targets, including Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a September bombing in Beirut and Haniyeh’s successor Yahya Sinwar in an October strike in Gaza. Israeli officials say Sinwar masterminded Hamas’s devastating attack on Israel in October 2023, which ignited the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.
Yemen in the Crosshairs
As the shadow war expands, Israel has set its sights on Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who have launched scores of missiles and drones at Israeli targets, including a projectile that wounded 16 people in Tel Aviv on Saturday. Israel has carried out three rounds of airstrikes in Yemen and threatened to ramp up the pressure until the Houthis cease their attacks.
With tensions soaring and the cycle of violence accelerating, fears are mounting that the tit-for-tat attacks could spiral out of control, drawing the region into a wider conflict. As Israel flexes its military muscle and its adversaries vow revenge, the prospects for de-escalation appear increasingly remote, leaving the Middle East on a knife-edge.
