Defence Minister Israel Katz has acknowledged that Israel had assassinated former Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran earlier this year, while warning that it would also “decapitate” the leadership of Yemen’s Houthis.
“We will strike hard at the Houthis… and decapitate their leadership — just as we did with Haniyeh, [Yahya] Sinwar, and [Hassan] Nasrallah in Tehran, Gaza, and Lebanon, we will do so in Hodeida and Sanaa,” Katz said.
His remarks at an event at the defence ministry mark the first public acknowledgement that Israel was behind the targeting of Haniyeh in the Iranian capital in late July, just a day after he attended the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
“Anyone who raises a hand against Israel will have his hand cut off, and the long arm of the IDF (Israeli military) will strike him and hold him accountable,” Katz said, according to a statement issued by the ministry.
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