(Image source from: Theaustralian.com.au)

Ali Larijani, who is in charge of security in Iran, was reportedly targeted in Israeli attacks on Iran during the night, based on reports from Israeli news sources. It is still not known whether Larijani, an important person in Iran's government, was killed or hurt in the attack, as stated by Times of Israel. Israel's defense minister, Israel Katz, has claimed that Larijani has died. However, Iran has not yet responded to these claims. Larijani, who has previously worked as a nuclear negotiator and currently holds the position of secretary of Iran's National Security Council, is viewed as one of the most powerful people in Iran. If it turns out he has died, he would be the highest-ranking Iranian official killed since the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, passed away at the start of the war. Larijani had a close relationship with Khamenei. He was reportedly last seen in public at Quds Day events in Tehran on Friday. On the same day, the US announced a reward of up to $10 million for information regarding senior Iranian military and intelligence leaders, including Larijani, as part of a group of ten individuals connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Several Israeli news sources also reported that the attacks aimed at Gholamreza Soleimani, the leader of the Basij Resistance Force, and other high-ranking Basij members, with the results of the attacks still being evaluated. However, Iran did not quickly confirm the leader of the militia's death. At the same time, Iran's state media, Press TV, released a statement on Tuesday that was linked to Larijani, where he criticized US President Donald Trump. "47 years ago, right before the people's success in the Iranian Islamic Revolution, the prime minister of the Pahlavi government said that the loud voices of huge crowds in the streets were not real but just a recording! Now, Trump claims that the massive protests against the US and Israel in Iranian cities are fake images made by AI," the statement mentioned. "The significant victory of the Iranian people over the remnants of Epstein's Island is close," it continued.

These reports surfaced one day after Iran's secretary of the Supreme National Security Council sent a message to the Muslim community stating that Tehran stands firm in its struggle against the US and Israel. Larijani expressed his disappointment at what he saw as a lack of backing from predominantly Muslim countries when Iran faced attacks. "Iran was subjected to a deceitful American-Zionist assault that took place during negotiations and aimed to break apart Iran. This assault resulted in the deaths of the great and devoted leader of the Islamic Revolution and several civilians and military leaders," he stated on Monday.