Ismail Haniyeh’s son denies circulating story about his father’s assassination and provides new details

Gaza - Ma'an - The eldest son of the late head of the political bureau of the Palestinian Hamas movement, Ismail Haniyeh, revealed new information about how his father was assassinated in the Iranian capital, Tehran, last month. Abdul Salam Haniyeh confirmed, in statements from Doha, that his father was subjected to a missile attack, after he was tracked via his smartphone, according to the Iranian Mehr News Agency. He pointed out that "a guided missile tracked his father's smartphone, which he had placed in his room at night near his head, causing a direct hit." Abdul Salam Haniyeh also denied previous allegations published by some media outlets that his father's assassination was the result of an explosive device. "The story of an explosive device is completely baseless," he said, adding: "There were bodyguards and other advisors sitting in a room a few metres away from his room, so it is clear that if there had been an explosive device, the entire place would have been blown up." Haniyeh's son stresse d that his father's phone "made him an easy target." "My father was attending an official ceremony (the inauguration of Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian), and he had his smartphone with him, so it wasn't too complicated," he said. Ismail Haniyeh's eldest son also revealed that his father was constantly calling from his phone on the day of his assassination, and that he even used it at 10:15 p.m., the night of his assassination. He also confirmed that the raid that targeted his father was carried out "with American cover," according to him. Ismail Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards were assassinated after their residence in Tehran was targeted on July 31, according to a statement issued by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. The statement said that the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh "was planned and executed by the Zionist regime, with the support of the criminal American government." Source: Maan News Agency