British media has revealed the details of how Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency targetted Hamas top leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, this week.
According to a report by The Telegraph, Mossad recruited Iranian security agents to plant explosives in a Tehran building where Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas political leader, was staying. The initial plan was to assassinate Haniyeh during his visit to Tehran in May for President Ebrahim Raisi’s funeral. However, two Iranian officials reportedly told the newspaper that the operation was called off due to the high risk of failure caused by the large number of people in the building.
Despite the change in plans, the agents still planted explosives in three rooms of the compound. They left Iran and detonated the explosives remotely from abroad. The report indicates that Mossad used agents from the Ansar al-Mahdi security unit, which is associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). An IRGC official described the operation as a significant security breach and a humiliation for Iran.
The Telegraph further reported that while the agents were able to exit Iran, they maintained a source within the country. The explosives detonated remotely, resulted in Haniyeh’s death. The IRGC is now investigating further, having discovered additional explosive devices in two other rooms of the compound.
