Malaysia PM Anwar attends absentee funeral prayers for Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh

Malaysia held absentia funeral prayers on Thursday and Friday for assassinated Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Iran's capital Tehran.

The prayers, held in three of the country's top national mosques,  came amid official periods of mourning and prayers for the Hamas leader in Muslim-majority countries.

In attendance at the prayers held in the National Mosque of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur on Friday was Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, alongside other top officials and a congregation of around 3,000.

The prayers followed an announcement from Malaysia's Department of Islamic Development (JAKIM) on Thursday, a day after Haniyeh was killed.

"JAKIM is deeply saddened and extends condolences to the family of the late Ismail Haniyeh, who passed away on Wednesday," the statement read.

"The deceased was a respected figure and steadfast in defending the Muslims if Palestine. May his soul be blessed with mercy and placed among the martyrs and those who are faithful and righteous," the statement continued.

On  Thursday, Prime Minister Anwar accused social media giant Meta Platforms of cowardice after his tribute to Haniyeh was removed from Facebook.

Anwar had posted a video recording of his phone call with a Hamas official to offer condolences over Haniyeh's death, which was later removed.

Malaysia has previously complained to Meta over its takedown of content, including local media coverage of Anwar's last meeting with Haniyeh, which was later restored.

Malaysia, a Muslim-majority nation in southeast Asia, has long supported the Palestinian struggle and hosted members of Hamas.

In 2018, Israel assassinated Palestinian electrical engineer and Hamas member Mohammed Fadi al-Batsh just outside the capital, Kuala Lumpur.

In 2022, Israel's intelligence agency Mossad was blamed for a failed kidnap attempt of a Palestinian man in Kuala Lumpur.  The man was snatched off a street and taken to a hotel room where he was interrogated, however was later freed by police.

On Friday, official periods of mourning for Haniyeh were also held in Pakistan and Turkey.

Haniyeh, a Palestinian refugee born in Gaza, was buried in Qatar on Friday after prayers attended by the country's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani.