Iran's top security chief Ali Larijani and Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani were killed in an overnight strike in Tehran, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz claimed on Tuesday 17 March, saying the pair at the heart of Iran's security apparatus had been 'eliminated' by the Israel Defense Forces.
Larijani was serving as secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, a powerful post that sits at the junction of foreign policy, intelligence and internal repression. Soleimani, no relation to slain Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, led the Basij paramilitary for the past six years, overseeing a force long accused by rights groups of beating, shooting and incarcerating protesters who dared challenge the Islamic Republic. Israel's announcement came against the backdrop of an intensifying shadow war with Iran, stretching from Gaza to the Gulf.
