Ali Shadmani, perhaps the most senior military leader in Iran’s now-decapitated armed forces, was reportedly assassinated just days into taking his position.
The Israel Defense Forces announced early Tuesday morning that it eliminated Shadmani via an “IAF strike in central Tehran, following precise intelligence.”
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei installed Shadmani as leader of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Iranian armed forces just five days prior, conferring on him the rank of major general.
Shadmani was selected to replace Lt. Gen. Gholam Ali Rashid, commander of the Khatam al Anbiya Central Headquarters, who was killed on Friday in a similar airstrike.
He also assumed various authorities left vacant by the assassination of other high-ranking officials, including Major Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces; Gen. Hossein Salami, commander in chief of the Guard; and Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of the Guard’s Aerospace Forces.
“For the second time in 5 days— the IDF has eliminated Iran’s War-Time Chief of Staff, the regime’s top military commander,” the IDF boasted early Tuesday morning.
It is not yet known who will replace Shadmani as head of the Iranian armed forces.
The bloodbath echoes Israel’s campaign against the highest-level leaders of Hamas, as well as Hezbollah. Throughout the years of conflict with the terrorist groups, top officials were routinely assassinated and replaced by subordinates, who were then assassinated themselves.
This culminated in the October 2024 killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the last logical choice to head the organization. Since his death, Hamas has been nominally led by a temporary five-person committee based in Doha, Qatar.
The decapitation strategy proved fruitful for the IDF in the war against Hamas, disrupting operations and stoking chaos in the ranks of the organization’s militants. It appears the same tactic is now being deployed in Iran.
Reports of additional assassinations continue to roll in as Israel’s bombing campaign shows no sign of stopping.
Brig. Gen. Mohammad Kazemi, the Guard’s intelligence chief, was killed in a precision strike over the weekend, as was his deputy, Gen. Hassan Mohaqiq.
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Reza Pahlavi, the crown prince of Iran, is urging the Iranian military to turn against Khamenei’s regime and overthrow the government.
“My message to the military, law enforcement, and security forces is clear: This regime and its corrupt and incompetent leaders do not value your lives or our Iran,” Pahlavi said. “Separate yourself from them and join the people.”
Pahlavi, the son of the last shah of Iran, is widely seen as the preeminent Western choice to lead the nation if the Islamic republic were to collapse.
