Assassination of Hamas political leader a blatant attempt to sabotage peace efforts: China's UN envoy

China firmly opposes and strongly condemns the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh that took place on Wednesday in Iran's capital Tehran. This act was a blatant attempt to sabotage peace efforts and wantonly trampled on the fundamental UN Charter principle of respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations said on Wednesday.

Speaking at a UN Security Council Briefing on the Situation in the Middle East, Fu stated that China is deeply worried about an exacerbation of the upheaval in the region that this incident may trigger.

Haniyeh, was targeted and killed in an Israeli strike early Wednesday while visiting Iran, according to a statement released by Hamas on the same day.

The Palestinian Islamist militant group and Iran's Revolutionary Guards confirmed Haniyeh's death. The Guards said it took place hours after he attended a swearing-in ceremony for Iran's new president.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government made no claim of responsibility and said it would make no comment on the assassination.

The Gaza conflict has been going on for nearly 300 days, resulting in nearly 40,000 deaths and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, said Fu.

He noted that over two months ago, the Council adopted Resolution 2735. As of now, however, ceasefire negotiations have yet to yield any progress, while the spillover effects of this conflict are increasingly visible, with the tensions between Lebanon and Israel, between Syria and Israel, and in the Red Sea sounding the alarm frequently. The Middle East situation is hanging by a thread, much to the concern of the international community.

Given the severity of the situation, the parties concerned must heed the international calls for a ceasefire and cessation of conflict. They must implement Council resolutions fully, actively coordinate with and support international effort in mediating peace, and take tangible actions to push for de-escalation and the restoration of peace and tranquility in the region, Fu noted.

They must not act single-mindedly and repeatedly take provocative or risky actions to stoke escalations. We strongly object to and condemn the recent irresponsible acts, including Israel's attack on Southern Beirut, said Fu.

China reiterates that military means and abuse of force offer no solution and will only lead to a bigger crisis. The continued deterioration of the Middle East situation is directly attributable to the continuous failure to implement a ceasefire in Gaza.

We urge all parties to comply with the overwhelming international consensus and work jointly for an immediate ceasefire to save lives, mitigate the impact of the havoc, and contain any spillovers. We urge Israel to implement Council resolutions in full, immediately halt all its military operations in Gaza, and immediately stop its collective punishment of the people in Gaza, said Fu.

Countries with major influence must put more pressure and work vigorously with the parties concerned and make tangible good-faith efforts to extinguish the flames of war in Gaza, said the representative.