Iran's Minister of Intelligence Denies Involvement of Espionage Agents in the Killing of Haniyeh

The Minister of Intelligence of the Islamic Republic announced that "based on the report and announcement of the IRGC," no role for espionage agents in the killing of Ismail Haniyeh has been observed. Ismail Khatib referred to the report and announcement of the IRGC while he was the Minister of Intelligence in the government of Ebrahim Raisi, a position he retained in the government of Mohsen Mehregan. Previously, in response to Haniyeh's killing in Tehran, the Minister of Intelligence stated that "the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh was carried out with the green light from the United States." Ismail Haniyeh, the former head of Hamas's political bureau, and his personal bodyguard, Wasim Abushaban, were killed in the early hours of Wednesday, July 31, in a security area of Tehran. According to published reports, the scenarios regarding the manner of the killing of the former Hamas leader and his bodyguard can generally be categorized into two groups: "attack by projectile" or "bombing at their residence." While the Islamic Republic, specifically the IRGC, claims that Israel killed Haniyeh by firing a projectile at his residence, foreign media, citing Western intelligence and security officials and some Iranian sources, confirm the validity of the second scenario. Axios reported on Thursday, August 1, in a report similar to that of the New York Times, citing "two informed sources," that Haniyeh was killed by the explosion of a bomb that had been previously planted in his residence. Axios's report stated that Mossad agents inside Iran detonated the bomb remotely after confirming Haniyeh's presence in his room. CNN also reported on Thursday, August 1, citing "an informed source," that the bomb that killed the former Hamas leader had been secretly planted in his room two months prior. CNN, like Axios, reported that American officials were informed after Haniyeh was killed by the Israelis during the operation. On the same day, the Jerusalem Post independently confirmed that Ismail Haniyeh was killed due to the explosion of a bomb planted in his room. On August 5, Abolfazl Zahrawand, a member of the National Security Commission of the Parliament, claimed that Israelis have a network of infiltration inside Tehran and Iran because it is a large country, and the Israelis have malicious elements in Iran that cooperate with them and define themselves within the Mossad network. Seven days after the Minister of Intelligence's remarks, Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran; part of the program of the last page of Hassan Bagherinia, an expelled professor, addressed to Khamenei: Ismail Haniyeh was your guest, not the people of Iran. How was Haniyeh killed? A review of various scenarios. The defense ministers of the U.S. and Israel discussed the "ongoing threats" posed by the Iranian government and Hezbollah. The IRGC stated that the waiting period for the Islamic Republic's response to a possible attack on Israel may be prolonged. The White House told Voice of America that the claim regarding the transfer of information about Mossad agents to the Iranian government is "absolutely false." The Organization of Islamic Cooperation held Israel responsible for the killing of Ismail Haniyeh and condemned this act. The Guardian reported that Iran may target those responsible for Haniyeh's killing instead of attacking Israel.