[IsraelTimes] Islamic Republic acknowledges deaths of Larijani and Gholamreza Soleimani after neither confirming or denying for hours; IDF also says it killed a top leader of Tehran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad
Top Iranian official Ali Larijani was killed in an Israeli Arclight airstrike
 ...KABOOM! ...
overnight Monday-Tuesday, Israel’s military and top leaders announced on Tuesday. The Israel Defense Forces said that the commander of Iran’s oppressive Basij force had been killed in a separate overnight strike as well.
Tehran at first did not confirm or deny either death, instead releasing an undated, unrelated handwritten statement from Larijani shortly after Defense Minister Israel Katz’s announcement, before confirming both of their deaths hours later.
"The pure souls of the deaders embraced the purified soul of God’s righteous servant, Martyr Dr. Ali Larijani," said Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, adding that his son and his bodyguards had died with him. "After a lifetime of struggle for the advancement of Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
and of the Islamic Revolution, he ultimately attained his long-held aspiration, answered the divine call, and honorably achieved the sweet grace of martyrdom in the trench of service."
"in the trench of service."??
Larijani, the secretary of Iran’s National Security Council, was targeted in a strike carried out by Israeli Air Force fighter jets while at a hideout apartment in the capital, Tehran.
The military said that Larijani "served as the de facto leader of the Iranian terror regime," after the late supreme leader Ali Khamenei
...the very aged actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini...>
was killed at the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran on February 28.
"For years, Larijani was considered one of the most senior and veteran figures in the leadership of the Iranian terror regime," the IDF said, noting his close relationship with Khamenei.
After the supreme leader’s death, Larijani "established his position as the de facto leader of the Iranian terror regime and led the fighting against the State of Israel and countries in the region," the IDF added.
It noted that "as part of his role, Larijani led the political-security coordination of the Iranian terror regime and was involved in directing its international activity."
The military also said that during the wave of protests in Iran earlier this year, "Larijani led enforcement and violent mostly peaceful suppression actions and even personally oversaw the massacre carried out against Iranian demonstrators."
Separately, the IDF said it had killed the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Basij Force, Gholamreza Soleimani, along with his deputy and several other brass hats within the paramilitary force.
Even more empty boxes in the org. chart… It said Soleimani and the other Basij officials were targeted while at a tent camp that was recently established by the paramilitary force near the capital, after many of its headquarters were struck by Israel over the past two weeks.
“During internal protests in Iran, particularly in recent periods as demonstrations intensified, Basij forces under Soleimani’s command led the main repression operations, employing severe violence, widespread arrests and the use of force against civilian demonstrators,” the military said in a statement.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu similarly said Larijani had been killed, stating that it was part of Israel’s goal to “destabilize” the Iranian regime in its ongoing aerial assault with the United States, in an effort to give the Iranian people “the opportunity to remove” the regime from power.
“This will not happen all at once; it will not happen easily. But if we persist, we will give them the opportunity to take their fate into their own hands,” the premier said.
In its initial response, Iran did not comment on either death but released a photo of a handwritten statement from Larijani regarding the funeral of Iranian sailors killed in the US strike on the Iris Dena on March 4.
Iranian state media had generated anticipation that the statement would contradict Israel’s claims, but it neither addressed nor disproved them.
“The martyrdom of the brave members of the Navy of the Army of the Islamic Republic in Dena is part of the sacrifices of the proud nation that has emerged in this time of struggle against international oppressors,” Larijani wrote in what may have been his final missive.
“Their memory will always remain in the heart of the Iranian nation, and these martyrdoms will strengthen the foundations of the Army of the Islamic Republic for years to come within the structure of the armed forces,” the statement added.
The statement was also posted to Larijani’s X account, although that did not disprove Israel’s assertion, given that Khamenei’s X account also remained active following his death on February 28 until Tehran admitted that he had been killed.
SANCTIONED BY THE US
Larijani hails from one of Iran’s most famous political families. A former parliamentary speaker and senior policy adviser, he was appointed to advise the senior Khamenei on strategy in nuclear talks with the Trump administration.
He was sanctioned by the US Treasury in January as Tehran violently suppressed nationwide protests. It identified him as being “responsible for coordinating the response to the protests on behalf of the supreme leader of Iran.”
“Larijani was one of the first Iranian leaders to call for violence in response to the legitimate demands of the Iranian people,” the US Treasury said at the time.
The nationwide protests in January and the violent crackdown that followed killed thousands and saw tens of thousands detained.
His death marked another in a series of severe blows to the leadership of the Islamic Republic, whose losses until now have included 86-year-old Khamenei, IRGC head Mohammad Pakpour, and top security adviser Ali Shamkhani, among others.
The IDF estimated last week that between 4,000 and 5,000 Iranian soldiers and commanders have been killed in Israeli strikes in Iran since the start of the war.
Separately, the military said on Tuesday that a recent airstrike in Iran had targeted top Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Akram al-Ajouri and other top officials in the terror group.
Al-Ajouri is believed to have been killed in the Wednesday strike, but the military said it was still working to confirm this.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir alluded both to al-Ajouri and to the strikes targeting Larijani and Soleimani in remarks during an assessment on Tuesday morning.
“Significant elimination achievements were also recorded overnight, with the potential to impact the campaign’s achievements and the IDF’s mission,” Zamir said. “This is in addition to eliminations carried out in recent days in Iran against external elements, also linked to the Palestinian arena.”
He said that the “senior operatives involved in terrorist activity from Gaza and from Judea and Samaria (West Bank)” were hiding in a safe house in Tehran when they were struck.
Mossad sees you when you’re sleeping,
They know when you’re awake,
They know if you’ve been bad or good…
Ali Larijani was hardline voice in Iran’s regime for decades, with supreme leader’s ear
[IsraelTimes] A heavy-handed culture minister, then parliament speaker and top security official, the close adviser to Ali Khamenei was widely believed to be running Iran after US-Israeli attack.
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