Israel says that it has killed one of the last remaining senior officials in Iran.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that it Iran's security chief, Ali Larijani had been eliminated, according to NBC News. The network reported that Katz was briefing President Trump regarding the "high rate of turnover" in Iran's leadership.
Israel also claimed to have killed Gholamreza Soleimani, the head of the Basij. The Basij is an all-volunteer force of Iran's Revolutionary Guard. NBC News reported that the Basij played a crucial role in the regime's deadly response to January protests around the country. Estimates of protesters killed by the regime in January have fluctuated between 7,000 and more than 36,000.
The Israel Defense Forces said that Soleimani led the Basij forces for the last six years. "Under Soleimani, the Basij unit led the main repression operations in Iran, employing severe violence, widespread arrests, and the use of force against civilian demonstrators," the IDF said.
According to the Washington Post, Larijani is the most senior Iranian official killed since the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the opening minutes of the military operation launched on February 28.
Larijani had repeatedly addressed President Trump directly on social media since the war began. Last week, Larijani wrote, "Trump says he is looking for a speedy victory. While starting a war is easy, it cannot be won with a few tweets. We will not relent until making you sorry for this grave miscalculation."
The Washington Post said that Katz described Larijani as the "defacto leader" of Iran.
