Iran’s Most Senior Leader Since Khamenei Confirmed Dead
In a dramatic escalation of the three-week-old conflict, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council has officially confirmed that Ali Larijani — the council’s secretary and widely considered the regime’s de facto leader since the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — was killed in an Israeli precision airstrike on Tehran.
The confirmation came hours after Israel’s defense minister announced that Larijani had been “eliminated” in overnight strikes on March 16-17, 2026. Larijani, 67, is the most senior Iranian official killed since Khamenei himself died on the first day of Operation Epic Fury on February 28.
Israel also confirmed the killing of Gholamreza Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s Basij paramilitary force — the regime’s primary tool for domestic repression and crowd control — in a separate “precision strike” in Tehran. Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency confirmed both deaths.
Who Was Ali Larijani?
Ali Larijani was a towering figure in Iranian politics. As secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, he was one of the most powerful men in the country and a close adviser to the late Supreme Leader. According to Reuters, Larijani was last seen publicly at a Quds Day march in Tehran before the strike that killed him.
His death comes at a particularly critical moment. With Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s whereabouts still unknown — he has not been seen publicly since the war began — Larijani’s elimination removes another pillar of the regime’s command structure. As the Euronews reported, the war is entering its third week amid a deepening leadership crisis as the Iranian New Year holiday of Nowruz approaches.
The IDF statement was blunt: “Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and the regime’s effective leader, has been eliminated.”
USS Gerald R. Ford Forced to Port After Onboard Fire
In a significant development for U.S. naval operations, the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford — America’s most advanced warship and the centerpiece of Operation Epic Fury’s naval component — is being pulled into port after a fire broke out onboard.
According to Reuters, the fire left more than 600 service members without beds and the carrier is expected to temporarily dock for repairs. The Ford and its strike group have been at sea for an extraordinary 261 days — approaching the all-time U.S. Navy deployment record of 332 days set by the USS Midway during the Vietnam War.
The Navy Times reported that Vice Chief of Naval Operations Admiral James Kilby had recently told lawmakers the carrier would likely reach an 11-month deployment mark. The fire and subsequent port call raise questions about operational sustainability as the conflict stretches into its third week.
Satellite imagery analyzed by defense analysts has also shown both the Ford and USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike groups pulling back from Iranian waters after what reports describe as a “gunboat encounter,” signaling a potential shift in naval force posture.
Top Trump Official Joe Kent Resigns: ‘Iran Is Not a Threat’
Adding to the political turmoil surrounding the war, Joe Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center and a key aide to intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard, resigned on Tuesday — becoming the first senior Trump administration official to quit over the Iran conflict.
Kent, a former Green Beret who was confirmed to his post last July on a 52-44 Senate vote, stated that Iran posed “no imminent threat” to the United States. His resignation is a significant political blow, coming from within the intelligence community that was supposedly briefed on the threat assessments used to justify the war.
According to the BBC, DNI Tulsi Gabbard responded on X (formerly Twitter), stating: “After carefully reviewing all the information before him, President Trump concluded that the terrorist Islamist regime in Iran posed an imminent threat and he took action based on that conclusion.”
Kent’s departure comes as Trump himself said Monday the war would end “soon” while simultaneously refusing to formally declare it over — insisting military action was necessary to prevent Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
CENTCOM Shifts Strategy: Targeting Iran’s Defense Industrial Base
U.S. Central Command has announced a significant strategic shift in Operation Epic Fury. According to Admiral Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander, strikes have moved beyond neutralizing immediate missile and drone threats to targeting Iran’s “wider manufacturing apparatus” and defense industrial base.
Key developments in the military campaign:
- Kharg Island strikes: CENTCOM confirmed large-scale precision strikes on Iran’s critical oil export hub, destroying naval mine storage facilities, missile storage facilities, and other military sites.
- Yazd military depot: A BBC journalist confirmed strikes on a military depot site associated with “IRGC missile command infrastructure” used to build “light and heavyweight torpedoes.”
- South Khorasan Province: The combined US-Israeli force targeted a suspected drone facility in one of the easternmost strikes since the war began.
- Tehran law enforcement: Strikes hit Law Enforcement Command stations in Tehran’s Navab and Enghelab neighborhoods — facilities involved in regime repression during the December 2025-January 2026 protests.
Iran has responded with its own escalatory measures, using what ISW reports are Russian-produced and possibly modified Shahed drones to target U.S. bases and Gulf countries. The regime has also cracked down domestically, targeting individuals with Starlink satellite internet access and reducing VPN availability.
The Human Cost: Rising Civilian Death Toll
The war’s human toll continues to mount. According to Iran’s representative to the UN Security Council, at least 1,348 Iranian civilians have been killed since Operation Epic Fury began on February 28. In Lebanon, where the conflict has escalated into a separate war between Israel and Hezbollah, the health ministry reports 912 deaths.
The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has warned of a “deepening human rights crisis,” noting that more than a thousand civilians have been killed, a primary school has been struck, and several UNESCO World Heritage Sites have been damaged.
Deaths have also been reported in the UAE, where Iranian strikes have targeted energy infrastructure, and in Iraq, where proxy attacks continue.
Strait of Hormuz Crisis Deepens
President Trump has chastised NATO allies, Japan, and China for what he called a lack of “enthusiasm” in helping to secure the Strait of Hormuz — the critical oil shipping chokepoint that Iran has effectively locked down.
Iran’s foreign minister stated the country is “open to countries who want to talk about safe passage” through the strait, while simultaneously warning that Hormuz “cannot be the same” — a veiled threat that the waterway will remain contested.
Oil prices remain elevated above $100 per barrel, and Gulf oil producers are reportedly scrambling to find alternative export routes that bypass the strait entirely.
What Comes Next
As Operation Epic Fury enters its 18th day, several critical questions remain:
- Where is Mojtaba Khamenei? The new Supreme Leader has not been seen since the war began, fueling speculation about his fate.
- Nowruz factor: The Iranian New Year (March 20) and the festival of Chaharshanbe Suri could become flashpoints for domestic unrest against the regime.
- Nuclear uncertainty: The IAEA has declared Iran in material breach but cannot verify current enrichment levels or stockpile size — Iran’s nuclear status remains unknown.
- Political fractures: Kent’s resignation raises questions about whether more administration officials will break ranks over the war’s justification.
With Larijani dead, the Basij commander eliminated, and the regime’s leadership structure increasingly hollowed out, Iran faces its most severe existential crisis since the 1979 revolution. Whether this accelerates a political collapse or hardens remaining elements of the regime remains the central question of this conflict.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as the situation evolves.