DUBAI: Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi will travel to Teheran today (Aug 4) in a rare visit to discuss regional developments with his Iranian counterpart following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Iranian state media reported.

Regional tensions had spiked following the assassination of Haniyeh on Wednesday, which came a day after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed Fuad Shukr, a senior military commander from the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hizbollah.

Hamas and Iran had both accused Israel of carrying out the assassination of Haniyeh and had pledged to retaliate. Israel had not claimed responsibility for the death nor denied it.

Safadi's visit to Iran followed continued diplomatic contacts by the United States and its partners, including France, Britain, Italy and Egypt, yesterday to prevent further regional escalation.

Iran and Jordan were seeking to improve their relations following recent tensions related to Amman accusing pro-Iranian militias in Syria of smuggling narcotics into the country and its taking part in the interception of Iran's first-ever direct attack on Israel last April.

 - Reuters