World
Analysis
Pedro Cordeiro, editor of International at Expresso, explains who the Hamas leader killed early this morning in Tehran was and the anticipated escalation of the conflict. In Venezuela, the population is in the streets, there are many signs of fraud, and events may escalate quickly.
The political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed early this morning in an attack in Tehran, attributed to Israel. A death that is expected to go without response, both from Hamas and Iran, according to Pedro Cordeiro.
“Ismail Haniyeh was one of the leading figures of Hamas outside of Gaza. He is a top target for Israel, therefore, speaking in the raw language of war, he is an important trophy for Israel.”
This death will have repercussions throughout the region, especially since Haniyeh was killed in Tehran where he was attending the inauguration of the new Iranian president. “We can also expect a response from the Iranian government.”
“I would not rule it out, this is humiliating for Iran. We know that Iran supports jihadist movements, such as Hamas and Hezbollah, so assassinating a leader of one of these organizations in the very capital of Iran, on the day of the inauguration of the new President, is obviously something that also embarrasses Iran and, therefore, I believe the repercussions will go beyond the Hamas movement and the death of this man.”
This is not the first time that Israel has carried out these selective assassinations abroad, especially in Iran, but it is aware that these actions always have their repercussions.
“Ismail Haniyeh is one of the responsible figures for the war and one of the most important leaders of Hamas. Therefore, he has a record of countless deaths and immense blood on his hands, and he was someone who, in the comfort of being far from the battlefield, was one of the leaders of actions such as, for example, the massacre of October 7 of last year.”
Venezuelans contest elections
Suspicions of electoral fraud in Venezuela are increasing, protests in the streets and from the opposition are multiplying. Pedro Cordeiro explains how things could escalate towards a civil war.
“A civil war could happen if, for example, we see a fissure within the Venezuelan armed forces, where, for instance, a significant part is with the regime and another significant part is against the regime (…) things sometimes escalate quickly.”