Report: Israel’s attack kills Islamic Revolutionary Guard chief

The commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Major General Hossein Salami, has been killed in an Israeli attack, the Iranian news agency Tasnim, considered the mouthpiece of the IRGC, reported on Friday.

Salami, commander in chief of the IRGC, was killed in an attack on the headquarters of the IRGC’s high command, the agency said. He was considered one of the most powerful men in the Islamic Republic.

General Staff Chief Mohammad Bagheri was also said to have been targeted in an attack, according to unconfirmed reports from Iranian media.

However, the state news agency Irna stated that he was unharmed and located in a command centre.

However, Tasnim confirmed the killing of two prominent nuclear scientists. According to the news agency, both Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, a professor of physics, and former nuclear chief Fereydoun Abbasi were killed in the attack.

The IRGC is Iran’s elite military force, far more powerful than the conventional armed forces. Over the past decades, it has not only been heavily militarized but has also expanded its societal and economic influence.

Today, it is considered an economic powerhouse, with stakes in industries including hotel chains and airlines.