Palestinians have gathered in different locations across the occupied West Bank to protest against the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas.
Haniyeh was killed in the Iranian capital, Tehran, early on Wednesday along with a bodyguard when the building in which he was staying was targeted. Hamas has accused Israel, which has yet to comment.
The assassination, which took place some 10 months into Israel’s war on Gaza, prompted shock and anger across Palestine.
In the West Bank, demonstrations took place in Ramallah, Hebron, Bethlehem, Nablus, Jenin, Tulkarem, Tubas and Qalqilya. Protesters carried Palestinian flags and dozens of green Hamas flags and chanted, “The people want Qassam Brigades,” a reference to the group’s military wing.
“This [the assassination] will lead to a bit of confusion but our resistance will continue. More leaders will come to take responsibility because this cause is not only ours, it is the world’s,” a woman in Ramallah told Al Jazeera.
“We have become accustomed throughout our lives to the assassinations of the leaders of our national factions, whether from Hamas or others like Fatah or the leftist movements,” a man said, adding that the fight for freedom will continue.
Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority, condemned Haniyeh’s assassination, calling it a “dangerous development”.
Abbas called on the Palestinian people “to unite, be patient and steadfast in the face of the Israeli occupation”.
Open support in Ramallah for Hamas is rare. Ramallah is the administrative capital of the occupied West Bank and is governed by the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority – long at odds with Hamas.
Israel began attacking Gaza, promising to eliminate Hamas and kill its leaders after the group launched an attack on October 7 in southern Israel that led to the killing of some 1,139 people and more than 200 being taken captive.
In Deir el-Balah, in central Gaza, Palestinians mourning the killing of Haniyeh said the assassination would complicate efforts to reach a ceasefire deal.
“This man could have signed the prisoner exchange deal with the Israelis,” Saleh al-Shannar, who was displaced from his home in northern Gaza, told The AP. “Why did they kill him? They killed peace, not Ismail Haniyeh.”
Nour Abu Salam, a displaced woman, said the killing shows that Israel does not want to end the war and establish peace in the region. “By assassinating Haniyeh, they are destroying everything,” she said.
