Iran is expected to hold a funeral later today for the powerful head of the Islamic Republic’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani, who was killed yesterday (Tuesday) amid ongoing Israeli and US bombing, with the Iranian army chief vowing that his forces would “avenge” his death.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council has confirmed the death of its head, a figure of Iranian power who had just Friday defied bombings and participated in a demonstration in the streets of Tehran.
His funeral is scheduled to take place at 12:30 p.m. (GMT) in the Iranian capital, according to FARS and Tasnim news agencies.
It will take place at the same time as those of the leader of the Basij paramilitary force, Golamreza Suleimani, who was also killed yesterday, and the more than eighty navy men aboard the frigate that sank a US submarine off Sri Lanka.
The names of Ali Larijani and Golamreza Suleimani were added to the long list of Iranian leaders killed by the US and Israel, most notably Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, in the early hours of the war on February 28.
Ali Larijani was targeted by “US and Israeli aircraft at his daughter’s home,”
according to FARS.
Iran “will take revenge” for “the pure blood” of Ali Larijani and “the other beloved martyrs”, General Amir Khatami, the head of the Iranian army, said in the early hours of this morning, according to Tasnim news agency.
For their part, the Revolutionary Guards said in a statement that the strikes that targeted Tel Aviv overnight – and resulted in the deaths of at least two people, according to Israeli first responders – were launched to “avenge” the deaths of Ali Larijani and other officials killed in Iran yesterday.
“Leader de facto”
Ali Larijani has been “the de facto leader of the Iranian regime, above all for the past two weeks,” said a senior Israeli army officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity. But even before the war broke out, “he was seen as the one making decisions and pulling the strings,” according to the same source.
The Israeli army promised yesterday that the same fate will also befall Mojtaba Khamenei, who succeeded his father by taking over as the new supreme leader a week ago but has not made a public appearance since. U.S. and Israeli officials have said he may have been “disfigured” as he reportedly suffered a leg injury in the attack that killed his father.
On the 19th day of the war that has set the Middle East ablaze, Iranian diplomatic chief Abbas Araghchi warned that its consequences would “affect the whole world”.
“The wave of global repercussions has just begun and will affect everyone–regardless of wealth, religion or race,” he said via X.
At the same time, the US announced that last night it had struck Iranian missile sites near the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic maritime artery through which a fifth of hydrocarbons normally pass to international markets, with some of the most powerful – 2.3 tonne – penetrating bombs in its arsenal.
For his part, US President Donald Trump in an indignant tone announced that his navy does not need the support of US allies to restore security to the strait, which Iran has effectively closed.
“We no longer need or want the help of NATO countries–we never did!” the Republican said via Truth Social, capitalizing the last four words, as is his custom for emphasis, after rejecting his claim that warships should be sent to the Strait by leaders of several countries.
In the meantime, Iran continues to launch attacks on Israel and neighboring Gulf states, targeting both U.S. interests and civilian infrastructure. In Saudi Arabia, the Defense Ministry said it intercepted drones and a ballistic missile headed for Prince Sultan Air Base, southeast of the capital Riyadh, where U.S. forces are stationed.
In the United Arab Emirates, an “Iranian missile” landed near the Australian military’s Middle East headquarters in Minhaj, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanesi said, clarifying that there were no injuries.
Qatar’s Defense Ministry also said a missile was intercepted, shortly after a French News Agency reporter heard explosions in the emirate’s capital, Doha, while Kuwait said drones were intercepted.
Hammering in Beirut
For its part, Israel continues its bombing campaign in Lebanon against the Iranian-allied Shiite movement Hezbollah.
Two Israeli bombings in the early hours of this morning in central Beirut have killed at least six people and injured 24 others, according to initial figures from authorities. According to media reports, the districts of Zoukak el-Blat and Basta were affected. A few hours later, a third district was bombed: “The enemy targeted the building threatened in Basra”, in the city centre, the official ANI news agency reported , after an X-ray statement by the Arabic-speaking spokesman for the Israeli army, Avihai Adrai, issued an “urgent warning to residents”, stressing that a building “linked” to Hezbollah would be bombed.
Furthermore, the Israeli army said it “began hitting Hezbollah terrorist targets” in the Tyre region of southern Lebanon, retaliating with “rocket launches against the State of Israel”.
Earlier, it had ordered the population to evacuate almost all of Tyre, part of a UNESCO World Heritage site, in a hurry, spreading panic among its residents. It caused traffic gridlock as thousands tried to leave in cars, Bilal Casmar, a spokesman for the disaster response service in the Tyre region, told Agence France-Presse.
Moreover, according to him, somewhere around 11.000 forcibly displaced people from other areas of southern Lebanon had taken refuge in Tyre after the war between Israel and Hezbollah flared up on March 2.
