Iran has confirmed the death of top security chief Ali Larijani on Tuesday, state media reported.
Larijani becomes the most senior Iranian figure to be killed by Israel since the assassination of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on the first day of the war.
Tehran had earlier denied reports that Larijani was dead and a handwritten letter dedicated to Iranian troops was released after Israel claimed he had been killed in an IDF strike.
A tribute to Larijani was posted on his social media account on X, it said: “Indeed, a servant of Allah has joined his Lord as a martyr.”
Israel said it had killed Larijani in overnight strikes which targeted “a hideout apartment” in Tehran.
Larijani, who led Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, had been regarded by experts as among those most likely to step into the power vacuum left by the death of Khamenei.
Despite Khamenei’s son Mojtaba being named supreme leader in his stead, Larijani remained a pivotal figure and was regarded by many observers as the country’s de facto leader.
Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz said another senior figure, the Basij paramilitary force commander Gholamreza Soleimani, had also been killed in a separate strike.
“Larijani and the Basij commander were eliminated overnight and joined the head of the annihilation programme, Khamenei, and all the eliminated members of the axis of evil, in the depths of hell,” Mr Katz said in a statement on Tuesday morning.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iranian state media confirmed Soleimani’s death on Tuesday.
The handwritten note posted on Larijani’s X (Twitter) account, commemorated members of the Iranian navy killed in US attacks on the Iris Dena off the coast of Sri Lank, whose funerals were expected to be held on Tuesday.
In the week before his death, he had posted a thinly veiled threat to Trump after the American leader vowed to rain down “death, fire and fury” on the Islamic Republic.
“The sacrificial nation of Iran doesn’t fear your empty threats,” Larijani wrote in a defiant post on X on 10 March in response.
“Even those bigger than you couldn’t eliminate Iran. Be careful not to get eliminated yourself.”
Larijani’s aggressive approach had been a key part of the rhetoric in the opening days of the war, following the 28 February strike on Tehran which killed Khamenei.
“We will not negotiate with the United States,” he said in the aftermath of the first US-Israeli strikes, adding that President Trump held “delusional fantasies” about the unfolding war.
Larijani was last seen in public on Friday, attending the Al‑Quds Day rally in Tehran alongside president Masoud Pezeshkian in a show of support for Palestinians living in the Iranian capital.
Who is Ali Larijani?
Born in the city of Najaf in 1958, Larijani began his career in government as deputy minister of labour and social affairs. In 1994, he was appointed head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, where he remained for a decade.
In 2005, Larijani was appointed as Supreme National Security Council secretary, putting him in charge of Iran’s nuclear negotiations. He had recently been overseeing Tehran’s efforts to reach a nuclear deal with the US.
Larijani had not been named among Iran’s new three-man council following the assassination of Khamenei. Nonetheless power in Iran is believed to remain concentrated within the Security Council, which had reportedly already sidelined Khamenei since the disastrous 12-day war with Israel last June.
Larijani’s power had also eclipsed that of the official president, Pezeshkian, as he had not only taken the lead in the international arena in recent months, but also domestically. He was among the earliest and loudest voices in Iran’s leadership calling for deadly violence to crush political demonstrations that erupted at the end of last year as Iran’s economic crisis deepened.
The unrest, the largest uprising since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, was met with a brutal crackdown. As many as 30,000 people are believed to have been killed by the regime this year, according to Iran International.
How powerful is Larijani?
Larijani’s grip on power came despite the fact that he had not been among the clerics Khamenei had identified as potential successors. The supreme leader had left a shortlist of three religious figures, with the role formally reserved for a cleric.
However he had been regarded by experts not just as a plausible leadership contender for the country, but one who could steer Iran toward an even more militarised model of governance.
While Donald Trump has said he wants to see regime change in Iran, the interim leadership has vowed vengeance against the US and Israel.
Larijani had accused the US and Israel of trying to plunder and disintegrate Iran, and had warned “secessionist groups” of a harsh response if they attempted any action. In a post on X, Larijani claimed President Trump had plunged the Middle East into chaos.
“With his delusional actions, he has transformed his self-made slogan of ‘America First’ into ‘Israel First’ and sacrificed American soldiers for Israel’s quest for power,” Larijani wrote. “He once again imposes the cost of his cult of personality on American soldiers and families. Today, the Iranian nation is defending itself… the Iranian armed forces did not initiate the invasion.”
