‘No one knows where missile came from’: Nitin Gadkari recalls meeting Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh hours before assassination; how he reacted

New Delhi: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has recounted his unexpected proximity to the assassination of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July 2024. Gadkari's account highlights the intersection of international diplomacy and the volatile geopolitics of the Middle East.

Gadkari was in Tehran representing India at the swearing-in ceremony of Iran's newly elected President Masoud Pezeshkian, upon the request of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Ahead of the ceremony, Gadkari found himself at a five-star hotel in Tehran, along with heads of state and senior officials from various countries. It was there that he met Ismail Haniyeh.

"All the heads of various nations were present, but one person who wasn't a head of state was Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh," Gadkari stated. He saw Haniyeh proceeding to the swearing-in ceremony alongside the Iranian President and Chief Justice, noting that Iranian authorities appeared to give him priority.

Gadkari returned to his hotel after the inauguration ceremony. However, in the early hours of the morning, at approximately 4:00 AM, the Iranian ambassador to India urgently requested Gadkari to leave immediately. When Gadkari inquired about the reason for the abrupt departure, he was informed that Haniyeh had been assassinated.

Gadkari expressed his shock at the news, asking how the assassination occurred. The response he received was, "I don't know yet". Iranian authorities later confirmed that Haniyeh was killed around 1:15 AM on July 31, 2024, while he was in a highly secured military complex under the supervision of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Haniyeh's bodyguard was also killed in the attack.

The exact circumstances surrounding Haniyeh's death remain unclear. "Some people say he was killed because of using his mobile phone. Some say it happened in some other way," Gadkari noted. The IRGC initially stated that a short-range missile struck the building where Haniyeh was staying.

However, other reports suggest a more intricate operation. One report in The Telegraph claimed that Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad, allegedly recruited Iranian security operatives to plant explosives inside the IRGC guesthouse in northern Tehran. According to this report, the original plan was to assassinate Haniyeh during a visit for former Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's funeral in May, but the attempt was called off due to the massive crowds. The revised operation involved planting explosives in multiple rooms, which were then detonated remotely around 2:00 AM.

Gadkari also commented on the importance of national strength for security, citing Israel as an example of a small country wielding global influence through technological advancement and military strength. He argued that a strong nation is less vulnerable to external threats.

The incident is considered a major intelligence failure by Iranian officials, with suspicions that insiders from an elite protection unit may have been compromised.