(FILES) Ismail Haniyeh, the Doha-based political bureau chief of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, speaks to the press after a meeting with the Iranian foreign minister in Tehran on March 26, 2024.  The United States unsealed a raft of "terrorism" and other charges against six Hamas leaders on September 3, 2024 related to the armed Palestinian group's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.  The charging document, dated February 1, targets six leaders of the group -- including Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar and late political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in late July in Tehran.  (Photo by AFP)

The National

The anxiety in the Middle East has been palpable since Tuesday night. The killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran happened only hours after Israel struck a south Beirut suburb, claiming to have killed Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukr.

Mr Haniyeh was on a trip to Iran for the inauguration of president Masoud Pezeshkian when he was killed, provoking vows of punishment against Israel by the country’s supreme leader, although Israel has yet to claim the attack. The strike in Lebanon came days after a rocket hit a football field in Majdal Shams in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, killing 12 children, for which Israel and Hezbollah blamed each other.

In the aftermath of a deadly week, we look at what happens when two major players in the so-called “Axis of Resistance” are attacked and how these escalations will affect ceasefire talks in Gaza. In this episode, host Nada AlTaher speaks to MENA programme director at Crisis Group Joost Hiltermann and Palestinian analyst Taghreed El-Khodary.

Mr Haniyeh was on a trip to Iran for the inauguration of president Masoud Pezeshkian when he was killed, provoking vows of punishment against Israel by the country’s supreme leader, although Israel has yet to claim the attack. The strike in Lebanon came days after a rocket hit a football field in Majdal Shams in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, killing 12 children, for which Israel and Hezbollah blamed each other.

In the aftermath of a deadly week, we look at what happens when two major players in the so-called “Axis of Resistance” are attacked and how these escalations will affect ceasefire talks in Gaza. In this episode, host Nada AlTaher speaks to MENA programme director at Crisis Group Joost Hiltermann and Palestinian analyst Taghreed El-Khodary.

Mr Haniyeh was on a trip to Iran for the inauguration of president Masoud Pezeshkian when he was killed, provoking vows of punishment against Israel by the country’s supreme leader, although Israel has yet to claim the attack. The strike in Lebanon came days after a rocket hit a football field in Majdal Shams in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, killing 12 children, for which Israel and Hezbollah blamed each other.

In the aftermath of a deadly week, we look at what happens when two major players in the so-called “Axis of Resistance” are attacked and how these escalations will affect ceasefire talks in Gaza. In this episode, host Nada AlTaher speaks to MENA programme director at Crisis Group Joost Hiltermann and Palestinian analyst Taghreed El-Khodary.

Mr Haniyeh was on a trip to Iran for the inauguration of president Masoud Pezeshkian when he was killed, provoking vows of punishment against Israel by the country’s supreme leader, although Israel has yet to claim the attack. The strike in Lebanon came days after a rocket hit a football field in Majdal Shams in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, killing 12 children, for which Israel and Hezbollah blamed each other.

In the aftermath of a deadly week, we look at what happens when two major players in the so-called “Axis of Resistance” are attacked and how these escalations will affect ceasefire talks in Gaza. In this episode, host Nada AlTaher speaks to MENA programme director at Crisis Group Joost Hiltermann and Palestinian analyst Taghreed El-Khodary.

Mr Haniyeh was on a trip to Iran for the inauguration of president Masoud Pezeshkian when he was killed, provoking vows of punishment against Israel by the country’s supreme leader, although Israel has yet to claim the attack. The strike in Lebanon came days after a rocket hit a football field in Majdal Shams in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, killing 12 children, for which Israel and Hezbollah blamed each other.

In the aftermath of a deadly week, we look at what happens when two major players in the so-called “Axis of Resistance” are attacked and how these escalations will affect ceasefire talks in Gaza. In this episode, host Nada AlTaher speaks to MENA programme director at Crisis Group Joost Hiltermann and Palestinian analyst Taghreed El-Khodary.

Updated: April 27, 2026, 6:53 AM
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