The United States was not involved in Wednesday’s assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said as he stressed that Washington remained focused on a Gaza ceasefire.
"This is something we were not aware of or involved in. It's very hard to speculate," Blinken said in an interview with Channel News Asia during a visit to Singapore.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards confirmed Haniyeh's death, hours after he attended a swearing-in ceremony for the country's new president.
Haniyeh, who leads the Palestinian militant group and is normally based in Qatar, has been the face of Hamas's international diplomacy as the war set off by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7 has raged in Gaza.
'Important not to speculate'
The assassination comes as Qatar, Egypt, and the United States are in the midst of negotiating a deal to secure the release of the remaining 115 hostages.
Haniyeh has been viewed as the Hamas leader who is more willing to make concessions for that deal compared with the Hamas leader in Gaza Yaya Sinwar.
"I've learned over many years never to speculate on the impact one event may have on something else," Blinken said when asked what impact Haniyeh's death might have on the war.
Blinken, who has been in Asia since late last week, said a ceasefire and the release of hostages being held in Gaza was crucial and the United States would do everything to make that happen.
"It's vitally important to hopefully put things on a better path for more enduring peace and more enduring security so that focus remains.”
Haniyeh’s assassination, which Israel has not taken responsibility for, came just hours after the IDF’s targeted killing of Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr who was responsible for the rocket strike in the Golan Heights on Saturday that killed 12 children.