Israel says it has killed Iran’s intelligence minister

Israel says it has killed a third senior Iranian official in two days as the war in the Middle East shows no signs of slowing down.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that Iranian Intelligence Minister Ismail Hatib was killed in the attack at night.

“Major surprises are expected on all fronts throughout the day,” Katz added, without elaborating.

Iran did not immediately confirm Khatib’s death.

Israel killed senior Iranian security official Ali Larijani and the head of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s Basij force on Tuesday.

Khatib was born in the southwestern province of Khuzestan in the early 1960s. For the past five years, the Shiite cleric has been the Islamic Republic’s intelligence minister. He previously held various positions in the Iranian security apparatus.

Khatib was considered extremely well-connected and retained his ministerial position even after the 2024 change of government, which replaced the ultra-conservative government with reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian.

In 2022, the US imposed sanctions on Khatib. In the background were cyber attacks said to have been carried out by the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence.

with DPA