Amid Gaza war, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh visits Tehran for meeting with Iranian officials

By Team Asianet Newsable | First Published Mar 26, 2024, 1:43 PM IST

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh visited Tehran on Tuesday to meet with Iranian officials a day after UNSC adopted a resolution for immediate ceasefire in Gaza, reported Iranian media houses.

A day after the United States Security Council (UNSC) adopted a resolution demanding immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the Palestinian terrorist group's leader Ismail Hanieyh on Tuesday reportedly visited Tehran to meet with Iranian officials.

Iran has backed Hamas in the nearly six-month war with Israel that has killed more than 32,000 Palestinians in Gaza. Tuesday's visit is Haniyeh’s second visit to Iran since the outbreak of the war on October 7.

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Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani called Monday’s resolution by the UNSC as a “positive step.” “A more important step is effective action for its implementation,” said Kanaani.

Hamas welcomed the UN resolution but said the ceasefire needs to be comprehensive, which includes the Israeli troops' withdrawal from Gaza and the displaced Palestinians' return to the war-ravaged enclave. The United States abstained from the UN vote, sparking a spat with its ally Israel.

Hamas also called for "a real exchange of prisoners" as it appealed for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons in exchange for the Israeli hostages who have been kept in Gaza.

Israel has consistently rejected Hamas' appeal for a permanent ceasefire and full military withdrawal. The terror group has insisted that it will only release additional hostages after Israel commits to ending the conflict.

Israel has dismissed Hamas' demands as delusional and emphasized that any truce agreement must come after the complete destruction of Hamas' military and governance capabilities.

It's estimated that nearly 130 hostages have been held in Gaza since Hamas's attack on October 7th.

In a statement on Monday, Hamas claimed that Israel “did not respond to any of the basic demands of our people and our resistance (Hamas): a comprehensive ceasefire, withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, the return of the displaced, and a real exchange of prisoners."

It added, "(Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and his extremist government bear full responsibility for thwarting all negotiation efforts and obstructing reaching an agreement so far.”

After the adoption of the UNSC resolution, the Israel Prime Minister’s Office, in a statement, warned that the decision of the United States to abstain has harmed the war effort against Hamas.

The statement said that the decision was “a clear retreat from the consistent US position in the Security Council since the beginning of the war,” and one that “gives Hamas hope that international pressure will allow them to get a ceasefire without releasing our hostages.”

Israeli Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan also slammed the Security Council for adopting the resolution and said, “On the one hand, the resolution says that taking civilians hostage is in violation of international law, yet on the other hand — despite the fact that you know Hamas won’t listen to your calls and release the hostages — you demand a ceasefire."

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