Qatar will hold funeral ceremonies on Friday for Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Iran.

Haniyeh had been living in the Qatari capital of Doha with other members of the Hamas political office.

He will be buried in a cemetery in Lusail, north of Doha, after funeral prayers at Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab Mosque, the largest mosque in the country.

Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and Germany, among others, said the events would be attended by “Arab and Islamic leaders” as well as representatives of other Palestinian factions and members of the public.

Haniyeh and a bodyguard were killed in the pre-dawn attack on their accommodations in Tehran early Wednesday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said. He had traveled to Iran to attend the swearing-in of President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday.

Israel, blamed by Hamas, Iran and others for the attack, has not directly commented.

US President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday that the United States is committed to defending Israel’s security “against all threats from Iran,” the White House said. 

The call came after the killing of a top Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran and after Israel announced it had killed Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut. 

Iran and Hezbollah have both said they would retaliate against Israel. 

Biden, who was joined on the call by Vice President Kamala Harris, also “emphasized ongoing efforts to de-escalate broader tensions in the region,” the White House said in a statement.

Biden “reaffirmed his commitment to Israel’s security against all threats from Iran, including its proxy terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis,” the White House said in a readout of the president’s call with Netanyahu.

“The president discussed efforts to support Israel’s defense against threats, including ballistic missiles and drones, including new defensive US military deployments,” it said.

dh/sms (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)