Tel Aviv, March 17 — The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said on Tuesday that Gholamreza Soleimani, commander of Iran’s Basij paramilitary force, and his deputy, Seyyed Karishi, were killed in an overnight strike. The IDF said the two were hit while in a makeshift tent area chosen to reduce the chance of being traced, rather than at a known headquarters.
In a post on X, the IDF said Soleimani had led the Basij for six years and directed major repression operations inside Iran, including the use of severe violence, mass arrests and force against civilian demonstrators.
Israeli media outlet TPS reported that the same airstrike also targeted Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s National Security Council and a former top aide to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Israeli officials said it was unclear whether Larijani was killed or wounded. Larijani is seen as a key power broker in Tehran and recently delayed a formal declaration naming Mojtaba Khamenei as the next Supreme Leader, highlighting his influence.
Israeli officials characterized the strikes as part of a broader campaign against Iranian military and security targets. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said the military “continues to operate vigorously against a number of targets in Iran,” striking military, industrial and Revolutionary Guard elements as well as parts of the regime’s repressive apparatus. He added that significant counterterrorism achievements had been recorded that could affect campaign objectives.
Zamir said the operation also targeted foreign Palestinian figures based in Iran, naming senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) personalities said to have been sheltering in a Tehran safe house. Those named included PIJ deputy chief Akram Ajouri and senior figure Muhammad al-Hindi. Ajouri, who survived an Israeli assassination attempt in Syria in 2019, has been linked to Quds Force networks and Hezbollah.
Larijani made a public appearance last Friday during Iran’s Jerusalem Day marches in Tehran, speaking alongside President Masoud Pazakhian and other officials and warning that U.S. and Israeli pressure would only strengthen Iranian resolve.
Officials have not confirmed whether the operation achieved all of its objectives. Analysts cautioned that the strikes — among the most audacious Israeli operations inside Iran in recent years — risk further escalating tensions across the Middle East, where Israel and Iran remain locked in regional rivalry.
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