Iranian state media reported that Major General Seyed Majid Khademi, the intelligence chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), was killed in a US-Israeli airstrike on April 6, 2026.
The strike occurred at dawn, though officials did not disclose the exact location.
Khademi, who had served for nearly five decades, played a central role in Iran’s intelligence and security apparatus. The IRGC statement highlighted his efforts in countering infiltration attempts and safeguarding regime stability. His death marks another significant blow to Iran’s leadership amid the ongoing war.
The strike follows a series of high-profile assassinations of Iranian officials. Last month, Israel targeted Ali Larijani, widely regarded as one of the most powerful figures after the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with intelligence minister Esmail Khatib. Earlier, IRGC chief Mohammad Pakpour, Basij force chief Gholamreza Soleimani, and defence minister Aziz Nasirzadeh were also killed.
Security analysts noted that Khademi’s death further weakens the IRGC’s intelligence wing, which operates independently from Iran’s regular armed forces and answers directly to the Supreme Leader. The IRGC not only serves as the ideological guardian of the 1979 Islamic Revolution but also controls vast economic interests, often described as a “state within a state.”
The United States and Israel have vowed to continue targeting Iran’s top leadership, including Mojtaba Khamenei, the new Supreme Leader.
