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Since the start of the Israel-Iran conflict on Friday, Israel has killed several high-ranking members of the Iranian leadership.
While 16 were confirmed dead, more than 20 senior officials of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other top commanders were among those targeted in Israel’s attacks.
Who are the top military officials killed so far? Euronews brings you the list.
Mohammad Bagheri
Chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces since 2016, Bagheri was killed in an Israeli missile strike on Thursday night, at the very onset of Israel’s attack on Iran.
He was one of the highest-ranking officers in the Iranian military, ranking second only to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
He coordinated Iran’s armed forces—both the regular army and paramilitary units—and played a central role in shaping the regime’s military doctrine.
Hossein Salami
Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC, Salami was also close to the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. Salami was one of the hardest on Iran’s rivals, notably Israel and the United States.
A combatant in the Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988) and an early member of the Revolutionary Guards, Salami served as the organisation’s deputy for nine years before becoming its commander in 2019.
Gholamali Rashid
Rashid was deputy commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the head of the IRGC’s Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, responsible for coordinating joint military operations.
A veteran of the Iran-Iraq War, too, he welcomed the fact that Iran had regional allies opposed to Israel and the US, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon or the Houthis in Yemen.
Ali Hajizadeh
Hajizadeh was the commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace Force. He led Iran’s missile program and was responsible for the April 2024 missile attack on Israel.
Mohammad Kazemi
Head of intelligence for the Revolutionary Guards, Kazemi was killed in an Israeli strike on Sunday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu first announced his death that evening during an interview on US TV channel Fox News. Tehran confirmed the news a few hours later.
Some other brigadier generals and senior officers were killed, including Mohsen Bagheri, Davood Shekhian, Mohammad Bagher Taherpour, Mansour Safarpour, Masoud Tayeb, Khosro Hassani, Mohammad Jafari and Javad Jarsara.
Fereydoun Abbasi leads list of killed nuclear scientists
In addition, sources have told domestic media in Israel that as many as 14 top nuclear scientists were also killed in Israel’s targeted attacks since Friday.
The former head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation was among the prominent scientists whose death has been confirmed. He also previously served as a member of the Iranian parliament.
In 2010, he survived an assassination attempt that Iran attributed to Israel—an accusation Israel neither confirmed nor denied.
