Regional
Iranians mourn Hamas leader Haniyeh’s assassination
Vowing to retaliate, Ali Akbar Ahmadian, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said: “All fronts of the resistance will take revenge for Haniyeh’s blood.”
Iranians turned out to mourn Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh on Thursday, a day after he was assassinated in Iran’s capital in an attack that has heightened fears of a direct conflict between Tehran and its arch-enemy Israel.
State TV broadcast live images of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei leading prayers at Haniyeh’s funeral at Tehran University, where thousands of mourners dressed in black chanted “Death to Israel” and “Death to America”.
His body will be flown to Qatar, where Haniyeh was usually based, for burial on Friday, Reuters reported.
“Rest in peace, Abu Al-Abed Ismail Haniyeh. Our nation, Iran, the Axis of Resistance, your people, your fighters … are united in the choice of resistance to end the Zionist occupation,” said Hamas deputy chief in Gaza Khalil Al-Hayya in a televised speech at Tehran University.
The Axis of Resistance is an alliance built over four decades of Iranian support to resist Israeli and U.S. influence in the Middle East.
Iran and the Palestinian Islamist militant group have accused Israel of carrying out the strike that killed Haniyeh hours after he attended the inauguration of Iran’s new president in Tehran on Wednesday.
But Israeli officials have not claimed responsibility for the attack that drew threats of revenge on Israel and fuelled further concern that the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza was turning into an all-out war in the Middle East. 
‘MAJOR REPERCUSSIONS’
Hamas’ armed wing has said in a statement Haniyeh’s killing would “take the battle to new dimensions and have major repercussions”.
Vowing to retaliate, Iran declared three days of national mourning on Wednesday and said the U.S. bore responsibility because of its support for Israel.
“All fronts of the resistance will take revenge for Haniyeh’s blood,” Ali Akbar Ahmadian, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, told Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency. .
The Axis includes Hamas, the Palestinian group that ignited the war in Gaza by attacking Israel on Oct. 7, the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon, the Houthi movement in Yemen and various Shi’ite armed groups in Iraq and Syria.
The region faces a risk of widened conflict between Israel, Iran and its proxies after Haniyeh’s assassination and the killing of Hezbollah’s senior commander on Tuesday in an Israeli strike on the outskirts of the Lebanese capital Beirut.
On April 13, Iran launched a barrage of missiles and drones at Israel in what it said was retaliation for Israel’s suspected deadly strike on its embassy compound in Damascus on April 1, but almost all were shot down.
“We want revenge because Israel killed Haniyeh, who was our guest,” an Iranian woman, who attended a rally after the ceremony at Tehran University, told state TV.
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UAE President arrives in Pakistan on first official visit
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Islamabad on Friday on his first official visit to Pakistan, at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Geo News reported.
He was received by Prime Minister Sharif and senior officials, with his aircraft escorted by Pakistan Air Force jets upon entering Pakistani airspace. The UAE president is accompanied by a high-level delegation.
According to Pakistan’s Foreign Office, the visit aims to review bilateral relations and discuss regional and international issues of mutual interest.
Regional
North Korea’s Kim Jong Un signals continued missile development over next five years
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has signaled that the country will continue developing missiles over the next five years, following visits to major munitions enterprises in the last quarter of 2025, state media KCNA reported on Friday.
Kim said the country’s missile and shell production sector is “of paramount importance in bolstering war deterrence,” according to KCNA.
The report said Kim ratified draft documents on the modernization of key munitions enterprises, which will be submitted to a major ruling party congress expected to be held in early 2026. The congress is set to outline North Korea’s development plan for the next five years.
KCNA’s report follows Thursday’s disclosure that Kim oversaw the construction of an 8,700-ton nuclear-powered submarine alongside his daughter, widely seen as a potential successor, as well as the test-firing of long-range surface-to-air missiles.
Regional
Turkey detains 115 suspected Daesh members believed planning attacks
Turkish authorities have detained 115 suspected Daesh members they said were planning to carry out attacks on Christmas and New Year celebrations in the country, the Istanbul chief prosecutor’s office said on Thursday.
Istanbul Police obtained information that Daesh members had planned attacks in Turkey, against non-Muslims in particular, during Christmas and New Year celebrations, the prosecutor’s office posted on X, Reuters reported.
The police raided 124 places in Istanbul, capturing 115 of the 137 suspects they were seeking, the statement said. Several pistols and ammunition were seized, it said.
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