Iran's Revolutionary Guards chief Hossein Salami killed in Israeli strike
What's the story
Israel on Friday launched a series of airstrikes across Iran, targeting the country's nuclear and military facilities. The strikes reportedly killed Major General Hossein Salami, the chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the operation targeted key personnel involved in Iran's nuclear program and components of its ballistic missile arsenal.
Operation details
Iran confirms death of Salami
Israel's military, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), said the coordinated airstrikes hit multiple locations across Iran. The operation, dubbed "Operation Rising Lion," is reportedly considered by some analysts to be the most serious attack on Iran since the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. The IRGC-linked Tasnim news agency confirmed Salami's death in an Israeli strike on IRGC headquarters. State-owned Mehr news agency also reported his death.
Casualties
Other Iranian officials killed in the airstrikes
Salami is among several top Iranian commanders and officials targeted in the airstrikes. Major General Gholamali Rashid, deputy commander of the Iranian armed forces, and nuclear scientist Fereydoun Abbasi are also reported to have been killed. The IRGC is Iran's elite armed force that reports directly to the Supreme Leader and operates outside the command structure of the country's regular military.
Diplomatic implications
US was scheduled to meet Iran on nuclear issue
The Israeli strikes come as US negotiators were preparing to meet Iranians for the sixth round of talks regarding their nuclear program on Sunday. In recent months, reports suggested that Iran had accelerated the development of near-weapons-grade nuclear fuel. US intelligence agencies had also assessed that Iran could develop a nuclear weapon in just a few months. Anticipating potential fallout, the US had withdrawn some diplomatic staff from Baghdad and offered voluntary evacuation to military families across the Middle East.