Top advisor to Iranian Supreme Leader killed in Israeli strikes, state media says

Ali Shamkhani Iran s former Supreme National Safety Council SNSC Secretary was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Friday according to Iranian state media reports Shamkhani was one of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei s top senior advisors and was reportedly taken out in his home in Tehran by an Israel Defense Forces IDF airstrike The death of Shamkhani marks another major blow by the Israelis in dismantling Tehran's military leadership MIKE POMPEO ISRAEL S STRIKES ON IRAN ARE RIGHTEOUS AND THE WHOLE WORLD IS BENEFITTINGShamkhani served as one of Iran's top military personnel for decades beginning as the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Ground Forces The IRGC is one of the country s most of powerful centers It was created after the Islamic Revolution and has evolved from a paramilitary domestic precaution force into a transnational force that has come to the aid of Tehran s allies in the Middle East from Syria and Lebanon to Iraq per the Times of Israel Lisa Daftari Iran expert and Foreign Desk Editor-in-Chief described Fox News Digital the elimination of Shamkhani signifies a strategic escalation aimed at destabilizing Iran's regime at its core This precise strike highlights a dual objective not only targeting its nuclear ambitions but signaling an unequivocal threat to the power structure itself Shamkhani's close ties to Khamenei amplify the gravity of the message casting uncertainty and fear among the political elite declared Daftari She added The calculated nature of this move underscores an effort to fracture the regime from within leaving no figure immune from vulnerability This marks a chilling precedent for Iran's leadership ISRAEL STRIKES KEY NUCLEAR FACILITY IN IRANSupreme Leader Khamenei entrusted Shamkhani and appointed him as commander of the Artesh Navy in where he helped rebuild Iran's naval capabilities post-Iran-Iraq War according to the group United Against Nuclear Iran The Artesh Navy was left disorganized and with minimal levels of equipment following the war The bulk notably the U S Navy made a large mark taking out nearly half of Iran s Navy during Operation Praying Mantis in according to the Strauss Center Iran focused on naval procurement building up its force with patrol boats anti-ship missiles and fast attack craft warships Shamkhani sought out self-sufficiency in Iran s military Shamkhani s rhetoric at the time echoed the Islamic Republic s traditional messaging over the Persian Gulf rejecting the presence of foreign warships and declaring the capability to install missile sites from the north to the south of the Gulf according to a United Against Nuclear Iran profile of him He held the post of minister of defense from August until August and led Iran's Supreme National Precaution Council from to ISRAEL S ACTIONS AGAINST IRAN CREATE STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITY FOR US IN NUCLEAR TALKS EXPERTS SAYIn a rare interview Shamkhani commented on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action JCPOA following the Trump administration s withdrawal When questioned if he was one of the people in Iran who felt that signing the pact was a mistake Shamkhani disclosed Yes I'm just following the viewpoints of my nation the people of Iran Shamkhani's influence reportedly increased following the death of Qassem Soleimani in Following Iran's retaliation for Soleimani s death the U S sanctioned Shamkhani The United States is targeting senior Iranian personnel for their involvement and complicity in the ballistic missile strikes revealed Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin at the time Michael Dorgan contributed to this description