As the assassination of Hamas Politburo Chief Ismail Haniyeh raises concerns about ceasefire negotiations, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have nonetheless expressed resilience and said they expect new leaders to emerge.
Early Wednesday morning, Haniyeh's residence in Tehran was hit in an airstrike after he attended the inauguration of Iran's new president, resulting in the death of the high-ranking Hamas official and a bodyguard.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps of Iran says Haniyeh was killed by an "air-launched guided projectile" that struck the building. The attack happened just hours after Israel's strike on Beirut, which killed Hezbollah senior commander Fuad Shukr.
Shafiq Daher, a resident in Gaza, described Haniyeh's assassination as a significant loss and said he expects a reaction from regional players.
"It's an irreparable loss, there will not be as humble a leader as Ismail Haniyeh. Secondly, I believe his killing will have a strong impact on the negotiations. We hope that there will be a strong response to his assassination, whether from Iran, Hezbollah or even from Gaza," he said.
Abu Odeh, another resident, highlighted the resilience of the Palestinian cause, insisting that new leaders always emerge.
"The Palestinian issue is always a birth of new leaders, whether Ismail Haniyeh or someone else was killed. During the past years they have assassinated many leaders in most of the resistance movements, not just Hamas, and despite that, new leaders were born. This is the characteristic of the Palestinian cause and the characteristic of the people of Gaza who live with that," Odeh said.
Palestinians in Gaza display resilience following Hamas leader's assassination
The annual number of global candidates taking the Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (HSK), or the Chinese Proficiency Test, surged to a record high of one million in 2026, according to the 2026 World Chinese Language Conference, which kicked off on Friday in Beijing.
The HSK now has more than 1,500 test sites in 169 countries -- more countries than any other language exam -- and has served over nine million test-takers cumulatively.
The global scale of Chinese learning keeps expanding, with 210 million people overseas learning and using the language.
"Our adult classes at our office in New York really exploded over the last couple of years, and the explosion has gone from not just beginners and first-time Mandarin students to more like HSK 5, HSK 6 and beyond students who are looking for that next level. Then they go on to more -- maybe private tutoring -- and [ask], 'How do I do this specific sector?' We're actually seeing that increased a lot as well," said Jamie Keyte, co-founder of Manhattan Mandarin, a Chinese learning center in Manhattan, New York.
"Language will certainly bring you many benefits. You can make friends in Chinese. Many countries want to cooperate with China, and you can help them better understand Chinese culture," said Graciela Barrantes, a Costa Rican student at the Beijing Normal University.
As demand for Chinese learning diversifies, how Chinese language education can be combined with vocational skills training has become a hot topic at this year's World Chinese Language Conference. During the event, the Chinese Education Ministry's Center for Language Education and Cooperation, together with multiple institutions, launched the "Chinese+" industry-education integration partnership initiative, aimed at helping other countries and regions cultivate local talent skilled in both Chinese language and culture and professional expertise.
Chinese language proficiency test hits annual record of 1 million
