Afghan Voice Agency (AVA): Abdul Salam Haniyeh, the son of martyr Ismail Haniyeh, the late leader of the political bureau of the Hamas movement, said in an interview about the revenge of his father's blood: "How to answer is a question that is related to politicians and Iran. But in my opinion, stopping the war against the Palestinian people and withdrawing completely from Gaza is the best response to the assassination of Martyr Ismail Haniyeh.
In an exclusive interview with Al-Quds al-Arabi, Haniyeh revealed that the perpetrators of this assassination had tracked his father's cell phone and targeted his residence in a building belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps with a guided missile.
He emphasized that this assassination did not happen with a hand grenade embedded in his room, contrary to previous claims. Parts of this interview are as follows:
- How did you receive the news of your father's martyrdom and where were you at that moment?
I was in Istanbul, Türkiye. At 5:30 in the morning last Wednesday, July 31, one of the youth informed me that my father was attacked and seriously injured. I told him that my father was martyred.
By the way, on the night of the assassination, my mother arrived in Türkiye. I entered her room and told her that her husband was seriously injured. A few minutes later, I told him that he was martyred. He started to cry but continued to thank God.
Immediately after the news was published in the media, the leaders of the Hamas movement, headed by Khaled Meshaal, arrived at my place of residence. 45 minutes after the assassination, we received a phone call from Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the president of Turkey, to offer condolences. Also, the Egyptian Intelligence Organization and Jibril Al-Rajoub, the secretary of the Fatah movement's central committee, and several other personalities contacted us.
Immediately after the assassination, I had no contact with the brothers who were in Iran with my father, to know what happened. It was agreed that we would go from Turkey to Doha, where my father had been temporarily residing since 2019, and where he was to be buried.
Immediately after that, I traveled to Tehran with my brother Hemam; We went directly to the funeral and participated in the grand funeral ceremony.
- During the funeral prayer, you met with Ayatollah Khamenei, the leader of Iran. what did he say
Ayatollah Imam Khamenei and all Iranian leaders were very affected by this incident and offered their condolences. The sadness on their faces showed that something very big had happened against Iran and their guest. But at that time, they did not provide any details about the assassination, as the investigation was still in its early stages.
- According to the information that reached you, how did the assassination happen and where did the Iranians' investigation go?
The Iranians told us that the assassination was carried out using a rocket that had an explosive warhead weighing 7.5 kilograms. The brothers who were with my father, as well as the Iranians, believe that the perpetrators of the assassination accurately identified his whereabouts by tracking my father's cell phone. . My father would always check his cell phone at night before going to bed after finishing his work for the day and reply to the incoming messages. Also, my father was a well-known political figure who participated in the inauguration ceremony of Masoud Pezeshkian, the president of Iran, and was present in a building known as the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The missile aimed very precisely at my father's accommodation in the room, so that it passed directly through the wall behind the bed. As a result of the intensity of the explosion, Sawim Abu Shaban, my father's companion, who was outside the room at that moment, was killed by shrapnel.
The Hamas movement pursues the case of terror together with the Iranians. They are trying to identify where the missile was fired and whether it was fired from a drone, a fighter jet or something else.
Also, Iran's investigation denies the allegation of assassination using a homemade bomb that was planted in my father's room or under the bed, and the evidence at the site does not support this allegation.
- In your opinion, is Iran's response too late? And if it happens, what will it look like?
As the family of the martyr, we believe that the hand that is stretched out to kill the Palestinian people, children, women and our father must be cut off. The international community must take responsibility for ending the war of extermination that Benjamin Netanyahu has waged against our people.
But the nature of the response to this terror has been left to the politicians and Iran. In my opinion, stopping Israel's aggression against our people and completely withdrawing from the Gaza Strip is the best response to the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh.
- Talk about Martyr Ismail Haniyeh. Do you have a prominent memory of him?
Shahid was not only my father, but also my friend and brother. A man with a kind and caring heart who was happy to help people. He was happy with their happiness and sad with their sadness.
He was accepted by the people at the social level and in every situation he was working. His relationships with people were based on love and communication in all areas.
Martyr was a believer and keeper of God's book. His heart was attached to the Qur'an, he read the surahs of the Qur'an every day, he was the imam of the mosque, he was a preacher since childhood, he prayed at night, he participated in the lectures and classes of the mosques, especially in the month of Ramadan.
In contrast to this religious and faith aspect, my father was a skilled politician who was respected by the Palestinians, regardless of factional differences. He was the man who brought national balance and the polls always showed him as the top candidate in every election.
In 2006, when he was prime minister, he took charge of the Ministry of Youth and Sports and attended the Doha Asian Games in the same year.
My last memory of him was in a WhatsApp video call two days before his martyrdom. My daughter, Farah, called her grandfather who loved his grandchildren. He inquired about the family and conveyed his greetings and love to us. This was the last contact we had.