IRGC Spokesman: The Wait for Iran's Response to Haniyeh's Assassination May Be Longer

About three weeks after the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas's political bureau, in Iran, Ali Mohammad Naeini, the spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), stated that the wait for Iran's response to this action may take longer. The Islamic Republic holds Israel responsible for the killing of Mr. Haniyeh, who was in Tehran to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Masoud Pezeshkian and was killed on August 1 at his residence. Meanwhile, Hamas is recognized as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union. Over the past three weeks, Ali Khamenei and other senior Iranian officials have continuously spoken of 'revenge' and 'retribution' for Ismail Haniyeh's death and promised a response to Israel. Israeli officials have remained silent regarding this assassination. On Tuesday, August 30, the IRGC spokesman also mentioned that 'Iran's response may not be a repetition of past operations.' In late April, Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones towards Israel in response to an attack attributed to Israel on the Islamic Republic's consulate building in Damascus, which resulted in the deaths of several IRGC Quds Force commanders; most of these were intercepted and destroyed before reaching Israeli territory. The IRGC spokesman also accused the U.S. of 'political maneuvering' in ceasefire negotiations regarding the Gaza war, stating that Iran welcomes 'sincere actions' for a ceasefire. Additionally, Ali Fadavi, the deputy commander of the IRGC, stated on Tuesday that the 'retribution' for Haniyeh remains strong and will occur. He added, 'We will determine the time and manner of punishing and avenging martyr Haniyeh.' Following threats from Iran and its allies such as Hezbollah, the U.S. has deployed more troops and equipment to the Middle East and has also accelerated diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza. Last week, Reuters reported, citing several anonymous Iranian officials, that if the war in the Gaza Strip stops, Iran will not attack Israel. President Joe Biden also stated that he 'expects' a ceasefire agreement in Gaza between Israel and Hamas to prevent Iran from taking military action against Israel. However, on August 17, Channel 13 of Israeli television reported that despite a meeting of senior officials from Israel, the U.S., Egypt, and Qatar in Doha to discuss a ceasefire in the Gaza war, Israel still assesses that attacks from Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic of Iran towards Israel are 'imminent.' On the same day, the American newspaper 'Washington Post' reported that Qatar, which is one of the mediators for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages, has asked Iran to refrain from a potential attack on Israel to avoid undermining this process. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, continuing efforts to end the Gaza war, spoke with senior Israeli officials on Monday and said that the Israeli Prime Minister agreed to a new U.S. proposal to bring the positions of the parties in the Gaza war closer and reach a ceasefire agreement. He called for Hamas to accept this proposal as well. The next round of ceasefire negotiations will be held in Cairo, the capital of Egypt, and Mr. Blinken will travel to Egypt and Qatar after Israel.