“Significant Surprises” Vowed as Intelligence Chief Killed
L of top Iranian leaders killed in 2026: Israel claimed Wednesday that it has killed another top Iranian official, the third in two days, while Iran lashed out with attacks on its Persian Gulf neighbours and Israel, using some of its latest missiles to evade air defences and killing two people near Tel Aviv as the war in the Middle East showed no signs of slowing.Israeli Defence Miner Israel Katz said Iranian Intelligence Miner Esmail Khatib was killed in an overnight strike and vowed that “significant surprises are expected throughout this day on all fronts”, without elaborating. Iran did not immediately confirm Khatib’s death.
The development comes a day after Israel killed top Iranian security official Ali Larijani and the head of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s Basij force.
The Kremlin has condemned what it called “the murder” of Iran’s leaders in US-Israeli airstrikes, a day after Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency confirmed that Ali Larijani, a senior adviser to Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had been killed in Tehran.
“We unequivocally condemn any actions aimed at harming the health of, or indeed murdering or eliminating, members of the leadership of sovereign and independent Iran, as well as those of other countries. We condemn such actions,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked about Russia’s reaction to Larijani’s death.
Here are the top Iranian leaders who have been killed so far in the war:
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Named officials killed
Phase 1 — The Opening Strike · Feb 28, 2026
Feb 28, 2026 — Day 1
Supreme Leader Khamenei killed. U.S. and Israeli strikes hit Leadership House in Tehran. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, is killed — confirmed state broadcaster IRNA early March 1. His daughter, son-in-law, and grandson also die in the attack.
Feb 28, 2026 — Day 1
12 more senior officials killed in same strikes. Confirmed dead: IRGC commander Mohammad Pakpour; Defence Miner Aziz Nasirzadeh; Armed Forces Chief Abdolrahim Mousavi; Defence Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani; intelligence emergency chief Salah Asadi; Khamenei’s military office head Mohammad Shirazi; SPND head Hossein Jabal Amelian; former SPND head Reza Mozaffari Nia; Minry of Intelligence official Mohammad Baseri; FARAJA intelligence chief Gholamreza Rezaian; deputy logics chief Maj. Gen. Mohsen Darebaghi; and plans and operations chief Maj. Gen. Bahram Hosseini Motlagh.
Phase 2 — Follow-On Strikes · Mar 3, 2026
Mar 3, 2026 — Day 4
Replacement defence miner killed one day after appointment. Majid ibn al-Reza, appointed just 24 hours earlier as acting Defence Miner to replace the slain Nasirzadeh, is killed Israeli forces before he can take up his post. In the same strike, Reza Khazaei — a senior member of the IRGC’s elite Quds Force — is also killed in Beirut.
Phase 3 — Lebanon Network Strikes · Mar 8 & 12, 2026
Mar 8, 2026 — Day 9
Iran’s Lebanon command network severed in Beirut hotel strike. An Israeli drone strike on a four-star Beirut hotel kills four senior IRGC-Hezbollah liaison officers, confirmed Iran’s ambassador to the UN: Lebanon Corps intelligence chief Ali Reza Bi-Azar; Palestine Corps intelligence chief Ahmad Rasouli; senior financial officer Majid Hassini; and intelligence officer Hossein Ahmadlou.
Mar 12, 2026 — Day 13
IRGC missile unit commander in Beirut killed. Abu Dhar Mohammadi, operations commander of the IRGC’s missile unit within Hezbollah, is killed in a strike. Confirmed the IDF and reported Axios.
Phase 4 — Targeted Assassinations · Mar 17–18, 2026
Mar 17, 2026 — Day 17
Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani killed. Israel strikes a makeshift combat headquarters, killing the head of Iran’s feared Basij paramilitary force alongside several top lieutenants. Confirmed the IRGC and Iran’s judiciary news agency Mizan. Soleimani led the Basij’s violent crackdown on January 2026 protests.
Mar 17, 2026 — Day 17
Ali Larijani — Iran’s de facto wartime leader — killed in safe house strike. The head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, widely believed to be running the country’s war effort, is killed in a targeted Israeli strike on a Tehran safe house. His son Morteza Larijani and office chief Alireza Bayat are killed in the same strike. Confirmed Iran’s SNSC via Mehr News — the highest-ranking official killed since Khamenei.
Mar 18, 2026 — Day 18 · Developing
Intelligence Miner Esmail Khatib killed, Israel says. Israeli Defence Miner Israel Katz announces Khatib was eliminated in an overnight airstrike on Tehran, along with senior minry figures. Iran has not confirmed his death. Khatib’s minry led efforts to counter Israeli intelligence inside Iran and oversaw arrests of alleged Mossad assets.
What’s Next
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Iran yet to confirm or deny the death of Intelligence Miner Khatib — official statement expected.
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New Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen in public since succeeding his father — Israel suspects he was wounded.
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Former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s status remains disputed — initial death reports unconfirmed Iranian authorities.
Sources: IRNA · Al Jazeera · Axios · AP · CBS News · CNBC · Iran International · Mehr News · IDF
Tier 1: Top leadership and national strategy
Iran’s top leadership has taken a severe hit in the ongoing conflict. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on February 28 in a massive joint US-Israeli airstrike targeting his residence and leadership complex in Tehran. On the same day, Ali Shamkhani, a senior advisor to the Supreme Leader, was also killed in strikes aimed at the country’s top security leadership.Story continues below this ad
The losses continued into March. Ali Larijani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and a key wartime strateg, was killed in a precision strike in Pardis on March 17. A day later, Intelligence Miner Esmaeil Khatib was confirmed dead following a targeted overnight strike on the Minry of Intelligence headquarters.
Tier 2: IRGC and military high command
Iran’s military leadership has also been significantly weakened. Chief of the General Staff Abdolrahim Mousavi was killed on February 28 in a strike that effectively disrupted the armed forces’ central command. The same day, IRGC chief Mohammad Pakpour and Defence Miner Aziz Nasirzadeh were also killed in coordinated attacks on Iran’s defence infrastructure.
The leadership vacuum deepened when Majid Ebn-e-Reza, appointed as Nasirzadeh’s successor, was killed in an Israeli strike just a day after taking charge on March 3. Later, on March 17, Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani was killed along with several deputies in a targeted strike. Mohammad Shirazi, who headed the Supreme Leader’s military office, was also among those killed in the initial wave of attacks.
Tier 3: Specialised 0perations and intelligence
Strikes have also targeted Iran’s specialised military and intelligence network. Hossein Jabal Amelian, who headed SPND, an organisation linked to advanced military and nuclear research, was killed on February 28. On the same day, police intelligence chief Gholamreza Rezaian was eliminated in coordinated strikes on Iran’s domestic surveillance apparatus.Story continues below this ad
Beyond Iran’s borders, the campaign extended to key operatives. Ali Reza Bi-Azar, intelligence chief of the Lebanon Corps, was killed in a drone strike in Beirut on March 8 during a Quds Force meeting. Abu Dhar Mohammadi, an IRGC commander linked to Hezbollah’s missile unit, was also killed on March 12 as part of operations targeting Iran-backed assets in Lebanon.
Strategic context
The killing of Ali Larijani could be a turning point. While Khamenei’s death was a major symbolic and structural blow, Larijani played a crucial role in both directing Iran’s military response and maintaining diplomatic backchannels with the West.
With his death, Iran’s interim leadership, led President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, appears increasingly isolated, raising serious questions about the country’s ability to coordinate both military strategy and international engagement going forward.
(With inputs from agencies)
