Israel confirms killing of Quds Force leader in Iran

Tel Aviv (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Israel Katz, the country’s defence minister, announced on Saturday that an Israeli military attack in an apartment in the Qom area of Iran had killed an experienced commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ foreign wing. According to a statement from Katz, Saeed Izadi was in charge of the Palestine Corps of the overseas arm, or Quds Force, Reuters reported.

The hostile attacks between Israel and Iran began on 13 June 2025, and have continued without any de-escalation or resolution. Israel began by conducting surprise air attacks which targeted important Iranian military and nuclear assets in central Iran, missile storage and launch sites, and the Arak nuclear facility.

The strikes targeted senior Iranian military leaders and nuclear scientists, killing dozens, including IRGC commander Hossein Salami and Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri.

Israel’s military subsequently stated that it had killed a second commander of the Guards’ overseas wing, identified as Benham Shariyari, in a strike on his vehicle overnight in western Tehran.

What role did Izadi play in aiding Hamas?

It stated the commander

“was responsible for all weapons transfers from the Iranian regime to its proxies across the Middle East”.

Shariyari provided missiles and rockets used by Hezbollah, Hamas, and Yemen’s Houthis to launch attacks on Israel, according to the Israeli military.

According to Katz, Izadi funded and armed Hamas during the initial attacks, describing the commander’s killing as a ‘significant achievement for Israeli intelligence and the Air Force’.

The United States and Britain sanctioned Izadi for alleged links to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian terrorist group that allegedly participated in the October 7 assaults.

How has the Quds Force supported militant groups regionally?

Quds Force created a network of Arab allies known as the Axis of Resistance, setting up Hezbollah in Lebanon in 1982 and backing the Palestinian militant Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

According to reports, however, the Iran-aligned network has taken significant hits over the past two years, following Israeli offensives that have weakened both Hamas and Hezbollah since the Palestinian group’s attacks on Israel in October 2023.