Washington:
Iran on Tuesday denounced Israel's “brazen admission” that it assassinated former Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this year, accusing the country of committing a “heinous crime” and over its response to rocket attacks defended.
“This shameless confession marks the first time that the Israeli regime has openly admitted its responsibility for this heinous crime,” Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Amir Saeid Iravani said in a letter to the UN Secretary General.
On Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz acknowledged that his country was responsible for the killing, the first time an official confession was made.
Haniyeh, who was seen leading Hamas' negotiating efforts for a ceasefire in Gaza, was killed on July 31 at a guesthouse in Tehran, reportedly by an explosive device planted by Israeli agents weeks earlier.
Until Monday, Israel had never admitted to killing Haniyeh, but Iran and Hamas had blamed the death of the Hamas political leader on the nation.
In October, Iran said it had fired 200 missiles at Israel, an apparent response to the killing. Israel said most of the projectiles were intercepted by its own air defenses or by the air forces of its allies.
On Tuesday, Iran's UN Ambassador Iravani called Israel's killing of Haniyeh a “heinous act of terrorism,” adding that Katz's statement showed that Iran was justified in attacking Israel in retaliation.
“It also reaffirms the legitimacy and legality of Iran's defensive response on October 1, 2024, as well as Iran's consistent position that Israel's occupation and terrorist regime remains the most serious threat to regional and international peace and security.”
On September 27, Israel killed Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in a bomb attack in Beirut, followed by the assassination of Haniyeh's successor Yahya Sinwar on October 16 in Gaza.
Israeli officials say Sinwar masterminded Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, which sparked the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, which has killed tens of thousands of people and left much of Palestinian territory in ruins.
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