In a one-two punch for Iranian proxy groups, Hamas said that its political bureau leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated in Tehran, hours after Israel bombed the Beirut home of Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr.

Hamas announced early Wednesday that Haniyeh was killed in “a treacherous Zionist strike on his residence” in Iran, which serves as Hamas’ primary sponsor. Haniyeh attended Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s inauguration the day before.

Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei held emergency consultations following the assassination. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said that “Haniyeh’s martyrdom in Tehran will strengthen the deep and unbreakable bond between Tehran, Palestine and the resistance.”

As of Wednesday morning, Israel had not taken responsibility for the strike, in which Haniyeh’s Iranian bodyguard was also reportedly killed. Pro-Hezbollah news site Al Mayadeen said a missile from outside of Iran killed Haniyeh.

Meanwhile, Israel closed its airspace north of Hadera, in preparation for a potential retaliation. Ben-Gurion Airport continued to operate normally.

Haniyeh resided in Qatar in recent years and was Hamas’ leading liaison in negotiations for the release of hostages kidnapped from Israel on Oct. 7 and held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Moshe Emilio Lavi, brother-in-law of hostage Omri Miran, posted on X that while, “for the average Israeli, Haniyeh’s death is a cause for celebration, for those Israelis with a loved one in captivity, the feelings are mixed … Allegedly, Israel made a legitimate strategic decision tonight, but it will profoundly impact the negotiations.” 

Jacob Nagel, a former Israeli national security advisor and senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, however, said that he does not think Haniyeh’s death will impact hostage talks, because Hamas Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar has the final say in negotiations: “I don’t see a hostage deal happening. I don’t think Sinwar wants it,” he told Israeli public broadcaster KAN. “Only with military action can we bring back the hostages … Hamas will be more flexible and make concessions when it feels pressured.”

Haniyeh’s portfolio also included Hamas’ international ties, and he met with Iran’s leadership on Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in April and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov last year. Moscow and Ankara condemned the killing, with Russia’s Foreign Ministry calling it an “unacceptable political murder” and Turkey saying it was “meant to expand the war to a regional level.” Over the weekend, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to invade Israel.

On Tuesday night, Israel bombed a building in the Dahiyah suburb of Beirut, following Saturday’s Hezbollah attack that killed 12 children in Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights. The Iran-backed terrorist group said the next morning that Shukr, also called Sayed Mohsen, was in the building, but did not confirm his death. 

Israel confirmed on Tuesday night that Shukr had been killed in the strike. IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari posted on X soon after the bombing that the military “targeted in Beirut the commander responsible for the murder of the children in Majdal Shams and killed many Israeli citizens.”  

Shukr was “Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah’s right-hand man and adviser on matters of planning and managing the war,” Hagari said.

The U.S. issued a $5 million reward for the Hezbollah military commander in 2019 over his “central role in the October 23, 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine Corps Barracks in Beirut which killed 241 U.S. military personnel and wounded 128 others,” according to a U.S. government Rewards for Justice website. 

Speaking after the attack in Beirut, but before Haniyeh’s assassination, Vice President Kamala Harris, who was en route to an election rally in Atlanta, said, “I unequivocally support Israel’s right to remain secure and defend the security of Israel … It has the right to defend itself against the terrorist organization, which is exactly what Hezbollah is. But all of that being said, we still must work on a diplomatic solution to end these attacks. We will continue to do that work.”

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in a press conference in Manila — held prior to the strike in Tehran — that “if Israel is attacked, yes, we will help Israel defend itself. We’ve been clear about that from the very beginning. We don’t want to see that happen; what we want to see is things resolved in a diplomatic fashion.”