Israel for first time acknowledges it killed ex-Hamas leader Haniyeh in Iran

Defence chief Israel Katz admitted to killing Ismail Haniyeh in July, warning the military would ‘decapitate’ leadership of Yemen’s Houthis

Reading Time:2 minutes

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, centre, in Tehran, Iran on July 30. He was assassinated the following day. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 4:32am, 24 Dec 2024Updated: 5:17am, 24 Dec 2024

Defence Minister Israel Katz on Monday acknowledged that Israel had killed former Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this year, as he warned the military would “decapitate” the leadership of Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

“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,” Katz said.

His remarks at an event at the defence ministry mark the first public acknowledgement that Israel was behind the late July killing of Haniyeh in the Iranian capital.

“These days, when the Houthi terrorist organisation is firing missiles at Israel, I want to convey a clear message to them at the beginning of my remarks: We have defeated Hamas, we have defeated Hezbollah, we have blinded Iran’s defence systems and damaged the production systems, we have toppled the Assad regime in Syria, we have dealt a severe blow to the axis of evil, and we will also deal a severe blow to the Houthi terrorist organisation in Yemen, which remains the last to stand,” Katz said, according to a statement issued by the ministry.

“Anyone who raises a hand against Israel will have his hand cut off, and the long arm of the IDF [Israeli Defence Forces] will strike him and hold him accountable.”

Israel will “damage their strategic infrastructure, and we will behead their leaders – just as we did to Haniyeh, Sinwar and Nasrallah in Tehran, Gaza and Lebanon – we will do it in Hodeidah and Sana’a”, Katz said.