Israel claims strike killed Iran security chief Ali Larijani; Tehran silent

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz claimed on Tuesday that Iran’s top security official Ali Larijani was killed in an air strike.

In a statement released by his office, Katz alleged that Larijani and the Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani were “eliminated” in overnight strikes.

"I have just been updated by the Chief of Staff that Larijani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, and the head of the Basij — Iran's central repression apparatus — (Soleimani), were eliminated last night," Katz claimed in a statement released by his ministry.

Israeli media earlier reported that Larijani, the head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, was the target of overnight strikes carried out by Israel.

There was no immediate response from the Iranian authorities to the claim.

After the Israeli claim, however, Iranian state media published a handwritten note attributed to Larijani, Reuters reported.

The last post on Larijani’s X account was posted at 0940 GMT on Tuesday, March 17. The post was a handwritten note honouring those who lost their lives from Iran’s Navy on the occasion of their funeral.

If his death is confirmed, he would be the most senior Iranian official to be killed after the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who died on the first day of the war.

Larijani, a former nuclear negotiator and a close ally of Khamenei, was seen in Tehran on Friday taking part in Quds Day rallies.

Later that day, the US offered a reward of up to $10 million for information on senior Iranian military and intelligence officials, including Larijani, as part of a list of 10 figures linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.