EPAAli Larijani was a close ally of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali KhameneiIsrael says Iran's top security official, Ali Larijani, and the head of the paramilitary Basij force, Gholamreza Soleimani, have been killed in Israeli air strikes.
"Larijani and the Basij commander were eliminated last night and have joined Khamenei, the head of the annihilation programme, along with all those eliminated from the Axis of Evil in the depths of hell," Defence Minister Israel Katz said.
Iranian authorities have confirmed the deaths of both men, as well as Larijani's son and bodyguards.
Larijani is the most senior Iranian official to have been assassinated since the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed on the first day of Israeli and US strikes on 28 February.
They triggered a war that has spread across the Middle East, with Iran retaliating by launching missiles and drones at Israel and Arab states hosting US military facilities.
The price of oil has surged, with Iranian attacks forcing production stoppages in Gulf states and disrupting exports through the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway.
Follow latest updates
Wary allies show there's no quick fix to Trump's Iran crisis
Strait of Hormuz: What have other countries said about Trump's request for help?
Tracking the wave of ship attacks that has choked off Strait of Hormuz
Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) confirmed early on Wednesday local time that Larijani had been killed alongside his son, Morteza, and one of his aides, as well as bodyguards.
"After a lifetime of struggle for the advancement of Iran and of the Islamic Revolution, he [Larijani]... answered the call of God," it said in a statement that was read out on state TV.
The announcement came several hours after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its air force had killed Larijani in a "precise strike" near Tehran the night before.
"Following the elimination of Khamenei, Larijani consolidated his status as the de-facto leader of the Iranian regime and led the combat efforts against the State of Israel and countries across the region," the IDF said.
But later on Tuesday, Larijani's social media accounts posted an undated, handwritten note that state media said was written on Tuesday.
The note praised the 84 "warriors" of the Iranian navy, who were killed in a US submarine attack on their warship off the coast of Sri Lanka this month. A ceremony was held to honour the sailors on Tuesday evening.
State TV read out a similar message about the sailors that it said was from Soleimani, the commander of the Basij Resistance Force - whom the Revolutionary Guards later confirmed was dead.
The Basij is a volunteer militia whose estimated one million members are often called out onto the streets to use force to suppress dissent. It is controlled by the powerful IRGC.
"During internal protests in Iran, particularly in recent periods as demonstrations intensified, Basij forces under Soleimani's command led the main repression operations," the IDF said.
The IDF also released video footage showing what it said was one of several air strikes targeting Basij checkpoints across Tehran on Tuesday.
Local media in Iran last week reported that a number of security personnel had been killed in Israeli strikes on four checkpoints in the capital.
Larijani was a former IRGC commander, who rose to prominence as head of Iran's state broadcaster, IRIB. He held the position for 10 years before becoming a security adviser to Khamenei in 2004.
He also served as Iran's chief nuclear negotiator with the West and as Speaker of Iran's parliament.
A former leader of the hardline "principlist" faction - committed to the ideological principles of the Islamic revolution, Larijani was described a "moderate conservative" in later years.
He was appointed secretary of the SNSC last August and is thought to have overseen the unprecedented crackdown by the Basij and other security forces on protests that swept across Iran in December and January. At least 6,508 protesters were killed and 53,000 arrested, human rights activists say.
He was also the late supreme leader's representative on the council, and was described by Iranian news outlets as an adviser to Khamenei.
Before the war, Khamenei reportedly tasked Larijani with devising a plan to ensure that the Islamic Republic would survive a major attack by Israel and the US, including the assassination of its leadership. After Khamenei's death, Larijani became an even more powerful figure.
Ali Larijani via X/via REUTERSLarijani (centre, speaking to Iranian TV) was last seen in public on Friday, at a Quds Day rally in TehranAlthough Khamenei's son, Mojtaba, was chosen as his successor, he has not been seen in public or appeared in any recent photographs or videos since the start of the war, having reportedly been injured in the Israeli strike that killed his father.
By contrast, Larijani regularly responded to statements by US President Donald Trump on social media, and was filmed walking with supporters of the Islamic Republic at the Quds Day demonstration in Tehran last Friday.
While it is very difficult to contact people in Iran because of an internet shutdown imposed by the authorities, Iranians opposed to the establishment sent text messages to BBC Persian welcomed the news of the deaths.
"I think it was a very important step because the decision-making brains must be shut down," a man in his 30s from Tehran said.
Another man, who lives in the nearby city of Karaj, said: "When they die, you might not believe it, but I get so happy because they're criminals and have so much blood on their hands."
More than 1,300 people have been killed in Israeli and US strikes in Iran since the start of the war, including 226 women and 204 children, according to the Iranian government.
In Israel, 12 people have been killed in Iranian missile attacks, authorities say.
Sirens sounded across the country after Iranian forces launched several missile barrages on Tuesday. There were reports of fires from impacts, but Israel's emergency services said nobody was wounded.
In the United Arab Emirates, authorities said debris from an intercepted Iranian missile killed a Pakistani national in Abu Dhabi's Bani Yas area. Oil loading at the port of Fujairah was also partly halted after a third drone attack in four days.
IsraelIranIran war
