Doha, Qatar – 1000’s of public on Friday attended the funeral devotion for the overdue Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh at Doha’s lavish mosque amid tight safety.
Haniyeh’s funeral devotion used to be attended through diverse Palestinian factions, diaspora teams, diplomatic dignitaries and nationals from many nations. He used to be laid to remains at Lusail royal cemetery north of the capital Doha on Friday afternoon.
Symbolic funeral prayers for Haniyeh were organised in numerous Muslim international locations, together with Yemen, Jordan and Turkey.
Streams of mourners began to reach on the Imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab Mosque at about 9am, greater than two hours sooner than the Friday devotion, to bid see you to the Hamas political important who used to be assassinated within the Iranian capital Tehran within the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Women and men, a lot of them dressed in the keffiyeh, the normal Palestinian shawl, and sporting Palestinian flags, got here to wait the funeral prayers in spite of Doha’s punishing warmth, which hovered round 45 levels Celsius (113 levels Fahrenheit).
His frame used to be dropped at Doha on Thursday upcoming a memorial tournament in Tehran, which used to be attended through 1000’s of public and the place funeral prayers have been led through the rustic’s Best Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranians waved Palestinian flags and carried photos of the 62-year-old Hamas chief as they took section within the funeral procession.
Haniyeh, who used to be the diplomatic face of Hamas based totally in Qatar, used to be assassinated in his lodging in Tehran. He used to be within the Iranian capital to wait the origination of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. Israel has no longer publicly claimed duty. Fuad Shukr, a senior commander with the Lebanese armed team Hezbollah, an best friend of Hamas, used to be additionally killed through Israel hours sooner than Haniyeh’s assassination.
Tributes
Hassan Abu Dhr, who misplaced his leg and hand in an Israeli bombing on Gaza’s Bureij refugee camp in November, got here to the funeral devotion to pay tribute to Haniyeh.
“We are in grief. We feel so sad because of his killing. He was like our father,” the 24-year-old, who used to be evacuated to Qatar for scientific remedy, instructed Al Jazeera. “Ismail Haniyeh was the pride of Gaza. We trusted him, he was the best leader for Gaza.”
Syed Ziaullah, a Pakistani nationwide, additionally attended the funeral prayers.
“I came here for him; it’s a relationship of brotherhood among Muslims,” Ziaullah instructed Al Jazeera. “He is a martyr and a patriot who struggled to free Palestine from Israeli occupation.”
Others who have been in attendance have been from other international locations together with Sudan, Bharat and Bangladesh.
Many public Al Jazeera said to expressed team spirit with Palestinians in Gaza, who’ve been dealing with Israeli bombardment for the generation 10 months. Giant swaths of Gaza were flattened and just about 40,000 public were killed since October 7, when Israel introduced its army offensive within the wake of a Hamas-led assault within its space. No less than 1,100 public have been killed all through the assault in southern Israel.
“I am here in support of Palestine and in support of our people who are facing genocide for the past 300 days. I am here I because am sad for the death of Ismail Haniyeh and for the death of [Al Jazeera’s] Ismail al-Ghoul and his colleague Rami al-Rifi,” 32-year-old Sara Abdelshafy instructed Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera Arabic journalist Ismail al-Ghoul and cameraman Rami al-Rifi have been killed in an Israeli assault in northern Gaza on Wednesday.
‘Down to earth’
Haniyeh used to be a important determine and thought to be available and approachable through many in Gaza.
Haniyeh’s recognition in part got here from the truth that he embodied a normal Palestinian within the Gaza Strip, stated Fathi Nimer, a Palestine coverage fellow at Al-Shabaka, a suppose tank based totally within the in demand West Reserve.
“He was a refugee born in the Shati refugee camp … most Palestinians are refugees, especially those in Gaza. His family was ethnically cleansed from Asqalan [Ashkelon, in present-day Israel]. What made him very relatable to people is that he went to a UNRWA [United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East] school and worked to support his family,” Nimer instructed Al Jazeera.
“People talk about him about being very humble and a very down-to-earth person,” he added.
Haniyeh joined Hamas as a pupil and rose throughout the ranks to change into Palestine’s handiest democratically elected top minister in 2006 on the moment of 44.
Regardless of dwelling outdoor of Gaza since 2019, he used to be no longer protected against the devastate of Israel’s battle. About 60 individuals of his folk were killed, together with 3 of his sons in April, in addition to his grandchildren, nieces and nephews.
“Through the blood of the martyrs and the pain of the injured, we create hope, we create the future, we create independence and freedom for our people and our nation,” he stated in April.
Haniyeh used to be a supremacy negotiator within the efforts to keep a ceasefire in Gaza.
“Haniyeh was described as a moderate and a pragmatist — someone who could plan for the long term and someone who could negotiate and deal with nuances of negotiations,” Nimer stated.
Haniyeh’s killing, he added, “will have undoubtedly negative consequences for the [ceasefire] negotiations”.
Israel has assassinated various leaders from Hamas, the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, and alternative Palestinian teams within the generation. Haniyeh had himself escaped an Israeli assassination try in 2003 together with his tutor Sheikh Ahmed Yasin, the Hamas religious chief and founder.
Nimer stated the hot assassinations may just backfire on Israel. “Whenever someone is assassinated, instead of killing their memory, they make them into a martyr – a hero for all the people,” he instructed Al Jazeera.