Israel has announced the killing of a senior Iranian commander, Saeed Izadi, whom it accuses of being a key architect of Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack that left approximately 1,200 people dead in southern Israel. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Izadi, who led the Palestine Corps of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, was targeted in a precision strike on Saturday in Qom, a city south of Tehran.
According to IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, Izadi was “one of the orchestrators” of the attack and bore responsibility for extensive arms transfers and operational coordination between the IRGC and Hamas. Zamir described the operation as a “tremendous intelligence and operational achievement,” saying Izadi had “the blood of thousands of Israelis on his hands.”
Iran has not yet confirmed Izadi’s death and continues to deny direct involvement in the October 2023 Hamas assault. However, Israeli intelligence asserts that Izadi played a pivotal role in financing and supplying weapons to Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups.
In a separate operation later the same day, Israel claimed it had killed another senior Quds Force officer, Behnam Shahriyari, in a drone strike in western Iran. Shahriyari allegedly managed logistics for the transfer of missiles to Iranian proxy groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah.
These developments come amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Iran, now in their ninth day. Tehran accuses Israel of targeting a nuclear facility near Isfahan, while Israel reports drone incursions from Iran and continues strikes against Iranian military infrastructure.
Iranian authorities report that at least 430 people, including military commanders, have died and 3,500 have been injured since the conflict erupted on June 13. The Human Rights Activists News Agency places the unofficial death toll even higher, at 657.
Tensions have also drawn in global powers. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned in Istanbul that any U.S. involvement would be “very, very dangerous.” Meanwhile, former U.S. President Donald Trump hinted at potential American airstrikes if Iran fails to return to nuclear negotiations, giving Tehran a “maximum” of two weeks.
In Israel, 25 people have been confirmed dead since the onset of the conflict, including one from a heart attack.
