OIC says Israel responsible for Haniyeh assassination, calls it violation of Iran's sovereignty

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) said it holds Israel "fully responsible" for the killing of Hamas political bureau head Ismail Haniyeh following an extraordinary meeting in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.

The 57-member bloc also described the incident as an "infringement on Iran’s sovereignty", as Haniyeh was killed in the country’s capital of Tehran last week, escalating tensions and fears of a widespread war in the region.

The OIC issued the statement following the meeting attended by foreign ministers in the coastal city of Jeddah, which also discussed Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza and occupation of the West Bank.

The OIC said it "holds Israel, the illegal occupying power, fully responsible for this heinous attack", which "constitutes a crime of aggression, a flagrant violation of international law and the United Nations Charter, and a serious infringement on Iran's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national security".

The bloc's members went on to "strongly condemn" Haniyeh's assassination.

Saudi Arabia, in its first comment on the incident, said Haniyeh's killing was a "blatant violation" of Iran's sovereignty, adding that Riyadh rejects "any violation of the sovereignty of states or interference in the internal affairs of any country".

Haniyeh, who held leadership roles in Hamas for over two decades, was killed in Tehran on Wednesday last week, in an air strike on the building where he was staying. He was in the Iranian capital to attend the swearing-in of President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Haniyeh’s assassination came one day after Israel killed Hezbollah senior military figure Fuad Shukr in the south Beirut neighbourhood of Haret Hreik. Israel claimed responsibility for that attack but has not confirmed or denied being behind Haniyeh's killing.

The assassinations have triggered fears of an escalation of conflict in the region, with Iran and Hezbollah vowing retaliation for the killings.

Haniyeh was mourned throughout the Arab and Muslim world, with absentee prayers and tributes held for him in Jordan, Morocco, Turkey and Malaysia, among other countries.

During the opening ceremony, Mamadou Tangara, foreign minister for OIC chair The Gambia, said Haniyeh's death "risked deepening and widening the ongoing bloodshed in the Middle East".

The OIC also discussed Israel’s war in Gaza, which has killed at least 39,699 Palestinians as of Thursday, and Israel’s decades-long occupation and violence in the West Bank.

The statement stressed that "the continuation of Israel's crimes and occupation of the Palestinian territories undermine security and stability in the region".

The organisation urged the UN Security Council to take "immediate and effective intervention within the framework of its responsibilities to maintain international peace and security".

The bloc also discussed "the necessity of respecting the legal and historical status of the holy sites, especially the Al-Aqsa Mosque, as a place of worship for Muslims only", and demanded that international NGOs work on the release of Palestinian detainees, ensure their protection and launch adequate probes into abuse and torture against prisoners in Israeli jails, in light of reports of horrific sexual abuse at the Sde Teiman detention facility.

Israel's brutal and indiscriminate military campaign in Gaza has entered its tenth month, with the enclave utterly devastated and its people exposed to disease and starvation.