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Kuala Lumpur: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today mourned and condemned the assassination of Hamas political bureau chairman Ismail Haniyeh.

In a statement, Anwar said he is deeply concerned how the murder would affect Palestinians, saying it was a move designed to derail peace talks amid a protracted crisis there.

“This was a murder of the most heinous kind, plainly designed to derail ongoing talks aimed at ending the carnage in Gaza that has claimed over 40,000 lives. It is patently clear that this could only have been carried out in an environment of utter impunity.

“Only the heedless and unconscionable will not see the need to intensify pressure on Israel to stop their murderous rampage,” said Anwar.

He expressed his concerns for the Palestinian people, whom he said have already been so cruelly subjected to so much pain, hardship and suffering for so many decades.

“Detractors who have criticised me for meeting with Ismail Haniyeh in the past, fail to appreciate Haniyeh’s profound desire for a peaceful Middle East and a Palestinian nation restored to its rightful dignity.

“I mourn the loss of a dear friend and a valiant advocate for his people,” he said.

On his social media accounts, Anwar shared his phone call to Hamas political bureau member Basem Naim — where he expressed his condolences.

“A few days ago, we received the latest information from our brothers in Turkey, and it is clear that the late brother Ismail was a pillar of this struggle, and one of the things he fought for was a peace agreement to restore the rights of the Palestinian people.

“There are clearly elements of sabotage. They do not want this peace agreement to succeed,” Anwar tells Naim.

Earlier, the Foreign Ministry said the Malaysian government condemned the assassination urged for an immediate and thorough investigation so those responsible can be brought to justice.

All mosques under the supervision of the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) and the Federal Territory Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) have also been instructed to organise absentee funeral prayers for Haniyeh's death.

Hamas announced earlier that Haniyeh was killed in an airstrike targeting his residence in the Iranian capital, Tehran.

Last week, Anwar said he welcomed the agreement between Fatah and Hamas, inked in Beijing, which aims to strengthen Palestinian unity.

Anwar said the Beijing Declaration represents a promising step towards achieving Palestinian solidarity, so crucial for realising the rights of the Palestinian people.

Noting that international backing is essential, Anwar also urged governments that have not yet done so to recognise the State of Palestine and support these unity efforts.