Israel Claims Killing of Senior Iranian Official Ali Larijani; No Confirmation from Tehran

Israel has claimed that it killed senior Iranian official Ali Larijani, head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, in an overnight strike.

According to a report by Agence France-Presse, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that Larijani was killed in a strike carried out on Monday night. He also claimed that Soleimani, identified as the commander of Iran’s paramilitary Basij force, was killed in the same attack.

In a statement released by the defense ministry, Katz said that the information was based on updates received from Israel’s military chief of staff. He stated that both Larijani, who serves as secretary of Iran’s top national security body, and the Basij commander were killed during the operation.

There has been no immediate confirmation or response from Iranian authorities regarding Israel’s claims.

However, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported at 10:54 a.m. on Tuesday, citing a post attributed to Larijani on X (formerly Twitter), suggesting he may still be alive. In the post, Larijani strongly criticized remarks made by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump had reportedly claimed that images showing millions of people participating in anti-U.S. and anti-Israel rallies across Iran were generated using artificial intelligence. Responding to this, Larijani wrote, “The historic victory of the Iranian people over the remnants of Epstein Island is very near.”

The conflicting accounts have created uncertainty over Larijani’s status, with no independent verification yet available.