Front Burner

A Hamas leader is assassinated in Iran

The killing in Iran of one of Hamas’s highest-ranking members, in what is widely believed to have been an Israeli strike, has sparked fears of a wider regional war.
A bearded man in a suit speaks.
Ismail Haniyeh, leader of the political wing of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, speaks to journalists after his meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, on June 28, 2021. (Hassan Ammar/The Associated Press)

On Tuesday, the leader of Hamas's political wing, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated in Iran. The killing is widely believed to have been an Israeli strike, although Israel has not claimed responsibility. 

News of Haniyeh's death came just hours after Israel announced it had killed a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut, Lebanon, which it said was in retaliation for a deadly attack in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights a few days before.

Now, the two attacks — coupled with Hamas and Hezbollah's ties to the Iranian government — are stoking fears that a broader regional war could be closer than ever.

Today we're speaking about all of this with Khaled Elgindy, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, and the author of the book Blind Spot: America and the Palestinians, from Balfour to Trump.

For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

Subscribe to Front Burner on your favourite podcast app

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Listen on Spotify

Listen on YouTube