Daily Times

Gaza conflict is going on with a scavenging assault by Israel on Palestinians. The death toll has risen over forty thousand and there is rubble all around.

World powers including the International Court of Justice have not been able to reign Israel from butchering Palestinians who have not played a part in hurting Israel.

The big wigs, besides providing moral, political and military support to Israel have also tried for the negotiations between the warring parties. Sometimes, these parleys seemed closer to positive conclusions also but Netanyahu’s adamance for Palestinians’ genocide has been a big hurdle. From Hamas’s side, their famous political wing leader Ismail Haniyeh has been the main negotiator who adroitly handled the talks to carve out an exit strategy for all the stakeholders. He was sadly killed in the most heinous attack in Tehran, where he was present for the sworn-in ceremony of the new Iranian President.

Mr Ismail Haniyeh was born in the al-Shati camp in the then Egyptian-controlled Gaza Strip in 1962 and filled with the cause of Palestinian liberation rose through the ranks of Hamas, a resistant movement.

If Iran is dragged into the conflict directly, the war will be next door to Pakistan.

He secured the position of its leader in the year 2007 and championed the cause of resisting Israeli occupation as well as atrocities against the Palestinians. Ismail Haniyeh sacrificed more than thirty family members for this cause and just three months back his ten family members including three sons were killed by Israel. He mostly lived in Qatar since the year 2017.

The killing of Ismail Haniyeh is of great significance. Not only his demise is a big loss to the Palestinian cause and a setback to the ongoing negotiations but also the timing and venue of his killing have spread a gruesome message, particularly to Iran and others in general. There have been attempts on Ismail Haniyeh before also which he could escape but killing him in Tehran at an official residence was beyond imagination.

Conflicting reports are there as to how was he killed which include a rocket attack, a missile attack and explosives planted in his room before his arrival. But the precision with which the attack was carried out is worth studying.

Throughout his reign, Netanyahu has endeavoured to eliminate the leadership of both Hamas and Hezbollah. However, due to the nature of both movements which is resistance, alternate leadership was always available to take over and continue with more vigour and zeal.

The difference between the killing of Ismail Haniyeh and others is that this time Israel has given a clear message that it does not wish for any negotiations and subsequently to bring the Gaza conflict to an end. It still wants to forge ahead with the genocide and perhaps eliminate Palestinians in the Gaza Strip once and for all under the garb of targeting Hamas and Hezbollah. The death of Ismail Haniyeh will certainly bring a halt to the ongoing efforts for negotiations which will gain Israel time.

Another apparent effect is that the perpetrators of this assault against Ismail Haniyeh are all those who deliberately want to create chaos in the region by widening the conflict.

There seems to be an effort to drag Iran into the turbulence already persisting in the region. Obviously, for Iran this is a matter of national and international prestige as a state guest has been killed under their protection. Iranians now need to re-establish their credibility for security matters amongst domestic and international audiences, until then foreign dignitaries will be reluctant to travel to the country even as state guests.

A big question on the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ capability to provide security to foreign dignitaries will certainly compel them to avenge it in a befitting manner and that’s what the Foreign Minister and Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces have been vociferously voicing. Also, there have been protests against the Iranian regime in the recent past for various issues and the current incident brings them under sharp public scrutiny.

It is yet not certain how the attack was carried out. Both Iranians and Israelis are quiet on the mode of conduct but there are other reports from some foreign media outlets.

It was initially mentioned that the attack was via a drone, then a rocket from a nearby building, which changed to a guided missile attack and now a new story has surfaced that stresses that the explosive was pre-planted in his room as far back as two months before his arrival. It appears that there is an attempt to divert the narrative.

A drone, rocket or missile attack could prompt Iranians for a stronger reaction as it is a direct breach of the territorial integrity of Iran. By mentioning that it was a planted explosive with the help of insiders it is endeavoured to embarrass IRGC and mandate them to look into their own house for the culprits.

The US has beefed up its security deployment in the region and has vowed to support Israel in its defence. How Iranians are going to respond to the situation is anyone’s guess. But one thing is for sure the region is going to become more turbulent and chaotic which will affect not only the warring parties but the countries around them also.

If Iran is dragged into the conflict directly, the war will be next door to Pakistan. With our already feeble economic condition, it is not at all in our interest to have turbulence in our neighbourhood, especially the Persian Gulf.

The writer is a Communication Strategist at the Institute of Regional Studies, Islamabad and can be reached at reema.asim81@gmail.com)