JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Israel confirmed on Tuesday morning that Ali Larijani, the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran and one of the most powerful figures in the terror regime, was eliminated in a wave of airstrikes targeting senior regime officials in Iran.

Following the death of Ali Khamenei on February 28, Larijani was described by Haaretz as the country’s most powerful man,and by The Australian as the de facto wartime leader of Iran.

On 15 January 2026, following the protests and claims of massacres in Iran, the US imposed new sanctions on Larijani, for his part in repressing protestors. According to a report, Larijani was the “mastermind” in the January 2026 crackdown, leveraging his close ties to IRGC commanders and intelligence services, together with his family’s longstanding connections to senior clerics, to consolidate support across rival factions and prepare to assume leadership after Khamenei’s death.

In response to the EU’s decision to label the IRGC as a terrorist organization, Larijani tweeted that the military forces of any countries supporting the EU’s decision against the IRGC would be considered terrorist groups and would face consequences of their actions.

The IDF also confirmed on Tuesday that the Israeli Air Force, acting on IDF intelligence, targeted and eliminated Gholamreza Soleimani, who operated as commander of the Basij internal police unit for the past six years, together with his senior command, at a makeshift headquarters approximately 1,600 kilometers from the border. Together with Soleimani, some ten other senior members of the Basij were eliminated, according to channel 14 military reporter Hallel Bitton-Rosen.

The Basij forces are part of the armed apparatus of the Iranian terror regime. During internal protests in Iran, particularly in recent periods as demonstrations intensified, Basij forces under Soleimani’s command led the main repression operations, employing severe violence, widespread arrests, and the use of force against civilian demonstrators.

Larijani and Soleimani were not the only regime figures to be targeted. IDF officials say that since the start of the operation, dozens of top Iranian military figures have been targeted.

Meanwhile, it was reported that Israel struck an underground compound in the city of Qom in recent days, where senior members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad were present, including Akram al-Ajouri and Mohammad al-Hindi, along with other operatives.

According to the report, al-Ajouri had been involved in rocket fire toward Israeli border communities and in directing attacks in the West Bank. After moving between different locations, he was reportedly located in a safe house in Tehran before being eliminated in Qom.

Defense Minister Israel Katz commented on the eliminations: “Larijani and the Basij commander were eliminated last night and have joined Khamenei, the head of the annihilation program, along with all those eliminated from the axis of evil in the depths of hell. The Prime Minister and I have instructed the IDF to continue pursuing the leadership of the terror and oppression regime in Iran.”

During a situational assessment on Tuesday, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir emphasized that “the IDF continues to act with determination against multiple targets in Iran. Alongside the ongoing impact and degradation of the regime’s military and industrial production capabilities, we are targeting elements of the Revolutionary Guards and the regime’s oppressive apparatus.”

He further noted that “significant preventive achievements were recorded overnight, with potential to influence operational outcomes and the IDF objectives. These follow additional significant preventive actions carried out in recent days in Iran against external elements, including those connected to the Palestinian arena.”

He addressed targeted operations and said, “Among other activities, senior terror operatives from Gaza and Judea and Samaria, who were hiding in a safe house in Tehran, were thwarted.”

The Chief of Staff also noted that “the operation against Hezbollah and the neutralization of threats to northern communities continues to serve as another central operational arena.”

Concluding his remarks, Zamir emphasized: “We are continuing to concentrate forces and conduct precise and targeted ground operations. Cooperation between the IDF and the U.S. Central Command continues to strengthen, with joint actions contributing to enhanced operational achievements. We will continue to act decisively to remove threats to the residents of Israel.”