IDF confirms strike kills Larijani, Iran’s de facto leader PHOTO

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced that on March 17, 2026, the Israeli Air Force, acting on IDF intelligence and leveraging specialized operational capabilities, conducted a precise strike that eliminated Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.

Larijani, who had assumed the role of de facto leader of the Iranian regime following the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was targeted near Tehran, the IDF reports.

“Throughout the years, Larijani was considered one of the most veteran and senior figures within the Iranian regime leadership, and was a close associate of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei,” the IDF statement read.

The military said that Larijani had consolidated his status as the regime’s de facto leader and directed combat efforts against Israel and other regional countries. He also oversaw national-security coordination and managed Iran’s international engagements, including operations with allied actors in the “axis.”

The IDF highlighted Larijani’s role in domestic repression, noting that during the latest wave of protests against the Iranian regime, he personally advanced violent enforcement measures and oversaw massacres of demonstrators.

“His elimination adds to the elimination of dozens of senior commanders and leaders of the Iranian terror regime, who were eliminated by the IDF during Operation Roaring Lion, and constitutes a further blow to the Iranian regime’s abilities to manage and coordinate hostile activity against the State of Israel,” the statement noted.

By Vafa Guliyeva