Ali Mohammad Naini, spokesperson of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), has been killed, according to Iranian state media reports on Friday. His death comes as the war involving the United States, Israel, and Iran continues to intensify across the Gulf region.
State media said Naini died in strikes carried out by US and Israeli forces. According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), citing a statement from the Guards published on Sepah News, Naini “was martyred in the criminal cowardly terrorist attack by the American-Zionist side at dawn”.
Killed hours after strong warning
The report of Naini’s death came just hours after he made strong remarks about Iran’s military strength. Earlier, Fars News Agency quoted him as saying, “Our missile industry deserves a perfect score... and there is no concern in this regard, because even under wartime conditions we continue missile production.”
He also stressed that Iran’s missile capabilities remain strong despite the ongoing war. “The missile industry has reached its highest levels. There are surprises coming for the enemy, and as the battles progress, they will become more complex and intense,” Naini had said.
Fourth major leadership loss this week
Naini’s death marks the fourth major loss for Iran’s leadership in the past week. Earlier, senior figures including Ali Larijani, Gholamreza Soleimani, and Esmail Khatib were also killed in strikes.
Conflict intensifies across region
The conflict, which began on February 28 after joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran, has sharply escalated in recent days. Israel reportedly struck the South Pars gas field, while Iran responded by targeting the Ras Laffan LNG facility in Qatar, one of the world’s largest energy sites.
Although Israel did not officially claim responsibility for the South Pars attack, US President Donald Trump attributed the strike to Israel. He later said on social media that Iranian gas facilities would not be targeted further.
However, Trump also issued a warning. He said that if Iran continues attacks on Qatar’s energy infrastructure, the US would retaliate and massively blow up the entirety of the field.
Israel signals more strikes ahead
Meanwhile, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said more operations are planned. He promised further “surprises” after claiming that Israel had earlier killed intelligence minister Esmail Khatib in an airstrike. Israel has indicated that it is targeting Iran’s top leadership as part of its strategy.