31 July 2024, Wednesday, 20:58 407

US not involved in Hamas leader assassination in Iran – Blinken

Editor: Tetiana Herasimova

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the United States was not aware of the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and was not involved in it.

He said this in an interview with Channel News Asia.

Blinken was speaking to the media during his two-day official visit to Singapore, hours after it was reported that Haniyeh had been killed at his residence in the Iranian capital, Tehran. He was a key figure in the Gaza ceasefire negotiations.

Commenting on the implications of this murder, Blinken said: "It's very hard to speculate, and I've learned over many years never to speculate on the impact one event may have on something else."

He stressed the importance of a ceasefire to end the nine-month war in the Middle East.

"We will continue to labour that for as long as it takes to get there," Blinken added.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, Ismail Haniyeh is the former prime minister and minister of foreign affairs of the Palestinian state.

In 2018, the U.S. Department of State recognized him as an international terrorist. This year, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Haniyeh.