Iranians mourn Hamas leader Haniyeh's death in Tehran

A mourning ceremony and funeral procession was held in Tehran on Thursday for top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Iran on Wednesday.

Hamas Politburo Chief Ismail Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards were killed early Wednesday when their residence was hit in Tehran, Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said on the same day.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presided over the mourning ceremony in Tehran, and martial law was imposed on nearby streets, with only pedestrians allowed.

Residents held up portraits of Haniyeh and the Iranian and Palestinian flags on streets to express their condolences for the late Hamas leader and their support for the Palestinian people, and called on the Iranian government to severely punish the murderer and take retaliatory actions against Israel.

"I think Iran should defend its rights against this injustice and respond to this crime so that Israel will not do this again in Iran," said Iranian resident Morad.

Many residents said that Israel has carried out many similar assassinations in Iran over the years, and this assassination of the top Hamas official in Iran is to divert the pressure Israel faces from the resistance front.

The resistance front is a term often used to refer to an unwritten regional coalition comprising mainly Shiite countries and groups in West Asia, which seek to fight Israel and end its occupation of the Palestinian territories and free the region from the West's domination.

"Israel has done many similar assassination operations and now they are trying to make up for their failure in Gaza, but Israel will not achieve anything they want to achieve," said another resident Mohammad.

Many also believed that the United States, as a supporter and ally of Israel, has continued to provide full support to Israel in various fields since the current round of conflict broke out, and the United States has always been the main factor causing unrest in the Middle East.

"If the United States could provide security for the region, there wouldn't be so many deaths in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. The United States will cause destruction wherever it goes. The United States, a country that claims to fight terrorism, is itself a major supporter of terrorists, their words are false," said Abu Gasim, a resident.

Haniyeh's body will be transferred to Qatari capital Doha ahead of his burial on Friday.

Iranians mourn Hamas leader Haniyeh's death in Tehran

A high-level mediation team from the African Union (AU) Commission has been dispatched to Juba, capital of South Sudan, to try to ease the rising tensions between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar, and help resolve the current political crisis in the country.

Riek Machar and several senior officials have been detained since clashes erupted in January between the South Sudan People's Defense Forces and the opposition fighters.

Machar was accused of instigating violence in Nasir in the northern part of the country.

The mediation team says it plans to engage Machar, but that meeting is yet to take place.

The AU is urging South Sudanese political leaders to resolve the current disagreement through dialogue.

Machar heads the largest opposition group that has an armed wing in the country, known as SPLM/A-IO.

South Sudan's government says it's still investigating Machar for being allegedly involved in clashes between government troops and armed civilians affiliated to SPLM/A-IO in Nasir.

"The mandate of the RTGoNU (the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity) is simple; that we stop war, we form a revitalized government of national unity so that we return security, sustainable peace in the country," said Martin Elia Lomuro, South Sudan's Minister of Cabinet Affairs.

Meanwhile, Machar's party members are calling on president Kiir to order the release of their leader.

The group argues that the arrest of Machar means the 2018 peace deal which ended five years of violence in the country has partially collapsed.

The government reaffirms its commitment to the implementation of the 2018 peace deal.

It says Mr. Machar is in conflict with the law and that the implementation of the peace deal should not be used as cover to commit crime. However, until now, South Sudanese law enforcement agencies have not charged Machar with any offense in a court of law.

South Sudan, which became independent in 2011, signed a peace deal in 2018 that ended a civil war between forces loyal to Kiir and Machar. Nearly 400,000 people died in the civil war.

Relations between Kiir and Machar, who have dominated South Sudan's politics for decades, remain strained. The clashes and latest political tensions between the two leaders have unsettled many citizens and the international community.

AU dispatches Panel of Wise to address ongoing instability in South Sudan