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Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) pledged a harsh retaliation against Israel following the killing of its top commander, Hossein Salami, in overnight airstrikes.
"(IRGC) is fully prepared to deliver a firm and severe response to the Zionist enemy’s aggression," the statement read, suggesting that the response was already planned.
"Necessary measures to counter such criminal acts and confront incidents of this nature have long been in place."
"In the early hours of today, the Zionist regime extended its evil and bloodstained hand to commit a crime in our beloved country, revealing its wicked nature more than ever by targeting residential areas. The regime must await severe punishment," Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said in a statement.
"By God’s will, the powerful arm of the Islamic Republic’s armed forces will not let it go unpunished," he added.
"In the enemy’s attacks, several commanders and scientists were martyred. Their successors and colleagues will immediately carry on their duties, God willing."
"With this crime, the Zionist regime has prepared a bitter and painful fate for itself—and it will undoubtedly face it."
Israel’s surprise airstrikes on across Iran—confirmed to have killed several senior officials—have triggered a wave of intense reactions from Iranians, experts and politicians ranging from celebration to alarm over the risk of war.
Among those killed was Revolutionary Guards chief Hossein Salami, prompting jubilation from many in the Iranian diaspora. Kaveh Shahrooz, a Canadian human rights lawyer and activist, posted on X:
“His hands dripped with the blood of 176 people aboard flight #PS752. May this be true. May there be a hell for him to burn in,” referring to an airliner shot down by the military unit in Tehran in 2020.
Actress and human rights activist Nazanin Boniadi warned that ordinary Iranians—already caught between an authoritatian government and years of economic pressure—now face the added threat of war.
"There was a 3rd path: strangle the regime, empower the people," Boniadi wrote, "Few committed to it. Now, innocent Iranians—who yearn for freedom—are caught b/w foreign firepower & domestic tyranny."
Former Obama adviser Ben Rhodes also weighed in, calling the strikes senseless and warning of a cycle of violence that could derail any remaining path to diplomacy.
Iran analyst and author Arash Azizi pointed out that a new round of nuclear talks was just days away, arguing that the decision to launch a strike now undermines diplomatic efforts and could plunge the region into broader conflict.
“Even if we take Netanyahu at face value here, Iran was months away from developing a nuclear weapon ... there was a round of diplomatic talks scheduled in THREE DAYS.... what justifies an attack before that?”, Azizi wrote on X.
Democratic Senator John Fetterman responded bluntly to reports of General Hossein Salami’s death, posting “thank u, next” on X after confirmation of the IRGC commander’s killing in the Israeli strikes.
A senior Israeli official told Iran International that leaders' homes and not civilians were targeted in airstrikes in Tehran, as Iranian state media announced the death of the Revolutionary Guards chief Hossein Salami.
"Homes of senior military and political officials were targeted in Israeli airstrikes in Tehran," a senior Israeli political official told Iran International, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"Civilians are not the intended targets," the official added.
Iran International was the first media outlet to publish official confirmation of the Israeli attack on Iran and its targets.
State news outlet IRNA reported that Hossein Salami, the head of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, along with another top commander and two senior nuclear officials were killed.
Ali Shamkhani, an advisor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was seriously wounded during an attack on his residence and has been transferred to a hospital in Tehran in critical condition, Nour News, a media outlet close to the Supreme National Security Council reported.
Khamenei is alive and being briefed on the situation following Israel's attack on Iran, Reuters reported citing a security source.
State broadcaster Press TV is reporting that several nuclear sites have been targeted in Israel's airstrike, including in Khondab, Khoramabad and the controversial facilities at Natanz.
The state TV correspondent reported the strike on Natanz as smoke rose from the site behind him.
