Assassinated Hamas leader Haniyeh buried in Qatar

A mourning and funeral ceremony was held in Doha, Qatar, on Friday for Hamas Politburo Chief Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Iran on Wednesday.

Haniyeh's body was laid to rest at a cemetery in Lusail, north of the Qatari capital, following the prayers.

Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, senior Hamas official Khalil al-Haya, and thousands of residents attended the ceremony, braving temperatures that exceeded 45 degrees Celsius.

Many residents condemned the assassination and expressed support for the Palestinian national liberation movement.

"Obviously, this is a crime against humanity to assassinate somebody who you are supposed to be negotiating with for a ceasefire. Israel has absolutely no respect for international law; they never have. I genuinely feel that Israel has lost all public opinion in the world," said Omar, a Doha resident.

Many Qataris also accused the United States of being an accomplice of Israel, saying it has long backed Israel on the Palestine-Israel issue and has been the main factor contributing to regional unrest.

"Actually, Israel gets all this support, especially from the USA. So the USA is the first responsible for what has happened in Palestine, for killing of all this number of kids, women, and men. So yes, the USA is the responsible number 1 for what is happening in Palestine," said Abdul, another Doha resident.

Haniyeh's body was transported from Tehran to Doha on Thursday. He and other members of the Hamas Politburo had long been based in the Qatari capital.

Assassinated Hamas leader Haniyeh buried in Qatar

Assassinated Hamas leader Haniyeh buried in Qatar

Assassinated Hamas leader Haniyeh buried in Qatar

Russia claimed on Thursday that its air forces and artillery forces have attacked airport infrastructure and energy facilities used to support operations of Ukrainian troops over the past 24 hours, while the Ukrainian side said that multiple battles are still lingering on between the two sides.

Russian air defense forces have shot down 59 drones over the past day, the country's Defense Ministry said on Thursday.

Russian forces said that they continued to rout Ukrainian army troops in west Russia's Kursk Oblast bordering Ukraine, as it has recaptured 10 settlements from the hands of Ukrainian troops in the region.

On the same day, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces issued a report claiming that by Thursday afternoon, there had been 79 battles on frontlines, most of which took place in the directions of Pokrovsk and Kurakhove, both in Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

Multiple battles are still going on, the Ukrainian military said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday that Russia had begun "counter-offensive actions [in Kursk], which is going in line with our Ukrainian plan".

Russia claims hitting Ukraine's energy facilities, Ukraine reports 79 battles on frontlines