Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas’s political bureau, arrived in the Iranian capital Tehran on Tuesday to convene with Iranian officials and discuss “the ongoing war in Gaza,” the militant group said in a statement.
Haniyeh and his delegation are scheduled to hold “a series of meetings and discussions with Iranian leadership, about political and on-the-ground developments” in the Gaza Strip, the statement said.
The Hamas chief, who is based in Qatar, is scheduled to meet Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian among others, according to Iranian state news agency IRNA.
Calls for a ceasefire: It comes a day after the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Both Hamas and the Palestinian authority welcomed the resolution. The Israeli ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, criticized members for passing a measure that called for a ceasefire “without conditioning it on the release of the hostages.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanani said the move was a “positive yet insufficient step” in a statement on Tuesday, calling for “measures to put the resolution into practice,” IRNA reported.
Human rights groups: Following the UN vote on Monday, Amnesty International said Israeli authorities “must immediately halt their brutal bombing campaign in Gaza and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid.” It added that, “Civilian hostages must be immediately released.”
