Reactions from Beijing to Southeast Asia

Condemnation of the attack that led to the death of the Hamas political leader in Tehran by the People’s Republic of China, which had a few days ago sponsored an understanding between the Palestinian factions. Silence from India, caught between the two fires of relations with Israel and Iran. Harsh Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim: “A crime made possible by absolute impunity in Gaza.”

Milan (/Agencies) – The attack that killed Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran at dawn today – one of the movement’s most iconic figures for nearly twenty years – is also causing reactions throughout Asia. There are also many questions about the consequences that this death – together with the operation explicitly “claimed” by Israel that killed Fuad Shukr, one of Hezbollah’s most important military commanders, in Beirut yesterday – could have on the current Middle East conflict. The risk of an extension of the conflict is evident, since Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has already spoken of the “duty of revenge” and of a “harsh punishment” for Israel.

The prospects for a ceasefire in Gaza are also weakening in this context, as is the further strengthening of the figure of Yahya Sinwar in Hamas’s ranks, who will no longer have to rely on a figure very close to founder Ahmed Yassin and who in recent years had been at the centre of the movement’s network of international relations. The fact that he was assassinated in Tehran the day after attending the inauguration of the new Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, also reduces the room for manoeuvre of this reformist exponent, recompacting the Iranian leadership.

In this scenario, China – which a few days ago had promoted in Beijing an understanding between the different Palestinian factionswhich also included the participation of a delegation from the Islamist movement that has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2006 – harshly stigmatized the operation which, although without official confirmation, was widely believed to have been carried out by Israel. “We are very concerned about the incident and firmly oppose and condemn the assassination,” said Beijing Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian. “We are deeply concerned that this incident could lead to further instability in the regional situation,” he added, calling again for “a complete and permanent ceasefire as soon as possible to avoid further escalation of the conflict and clashes.”

Indian diplomacy is silent for the moment on Haniyeh’s assassination, caught between the two fires of the relations that Modi has built with Israel in recent years and the equally important ones with Iran. And it is significant that Indian news sites, in reporting the news of the assault, underline the fact that at Pezeshkian’s inauguration yesterday, the Hamas leader was on the same stage as Nitin Gadkari, the minister in Modi’s government sent to represent New Delhi at the ceremony.

However, the reaction of Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, a large Muslim-majority country in South-East Asia, was very harsh. “It is clear that this crime could only have been committed in an environment of absolute impunity,” he said, referring to the nearly 40,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza since the beginning of the conflict. “The detractors who criticised me for meeting Ismail Haniyeh in the past,” Anwar added, “did not appreciate Haniyeh’s profound desire for a peaceful Middle East and a Palestinian nation restored to its legitimate dignity. I regret the loss of a dear friend and a courageous defender of his people.”

(with the collaboration of Joseph Masilamany)