The death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in an Israeli airstrike in Tehran on Saturday marked the “culmination” of efforts to eliminate Iran’s regional terror leadership, the Israel Defense Forces said on Sunday.
According to the IDF, the strike was based on precise intelligence and follows the targeted killings of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif, Houthi commander Muhammad al-Ghamari and several top Iranian military officials, including IRGC commander Hossein Salami and Armed Forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri.
It’s official: All senior terrorist leaders of Iran’s Axis of Terror have been eliminated pic.twitter.com/9T901u5ZsH
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) March 1, 2026
The army said the series of operations—including “Rising Lion” against the Iranian regime in June 2025 and “Northern Arrows” against Hezbollah in September 2024—has dismantled the leadership of the Iranian-led terror axis responsible for many attacks against Israel, including the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led massacre.
“Their elimination significantly degrades the Iranian terror axis and has made the Middle East a safer place for the State of Israel and the entire world,” the IDF said, adding it will “continue to thwart any elements that pose a threat to the State of Israel and its citizens, and continue to strike infrastructure belonging to the Iranian terror regime in order to degrade the regime and thwart threats against the State of Israel.”
