Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Iran’s Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces and its highest-ranking military officer, was killed in a targeted Israeli airstrike on Tehran early Friday morning, according to Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency. The assassination represents one of the most significant blows to Iran’s military command in recent decades and comes amid rapidly escalating tensions between Iran and Israel.
Bagheri, a key strategic planner and architect of Iran’s regional military operations, oversaw coordination between Iran’s conventional armed forces and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). His death marks a major loss for Tehran’s military establishment at a critical time of geopolitical volatility in the region.
The Israeli airstrikes, which analysts describe as the most extensive offensive on the Iranian capital in years, also killed several other top military figures and nuclear scientists. IRGC Commander-in-Chief Major General Hossein Salami and Major General Gholamali Rashid, who led the Khatam al-Anbia operational headquarters, were both confirmed dead. Additionally, two senior nuclear scientists, Mohammad Mahdi Tehranchi, president of Islamic Azad University, and Fereydoon Abbasi, former head of the Atomic Energy Organization, were among those killed.
Iranian media reported that multiple military installations and civilian residential areas were struck, resulting in further casualties and widespread damage. Flights were suspended at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport due to concerns over potential follow-up attacks and regional instability.
The timing of the airstrikes, occurring just days before a new round of nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington, threatens to derail ongoing diplomatic efforts and raise the risk of broader conflict. No official statement has been released by Israel, but the precision and scope of the strikes indicate a coordinated campaign aimed at crippling Iran’s senior military leadership and disrupting its nuclear development capabilities.
General Bagheri played a crucial role in directing Iran’s military doctrine and extending its influence through regional proxies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and militias in Syria and Iraq. His assassination is expected to provoke a strong and potentially retaliatory response from Iran.
The Iranian government has yet to announce the funeral arrangements, but national mourning has been declared, and state officials have vowed to respond to what they describe as an act of war. The international community is closely monitoring the situation as fears of a wider regional conflict continue to grow.
