Israel claims Iran’s intel minister killed in overnight strike

Israel Katz, the defence minister of Israel, has claimed that Esmail Khatib was killed in an overnight Israeli attack, though there has been no immediate confirmation from Iran.

Speaking on the development, Katz said Israel’s military had also been authorised to target other senior Iranian officials without requiring additional approval from political leadership, indicating a further escalation in the ongoing tensions.

Israeli military analysts described Khatib as a close figure to Iran’s leadership. He was appointed intelligence minister in 2021 by former president Ebrahim Raisi.

Khatib had a long career within Iran’s security establishment, holding key roles in the Ministry of Intelligence and the Office of the Supreme Leader. He studied Islamic jurisprudence under several senior clerics, including the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

According to Israeli sources, the latest strike is part of a broader operation in which intelligence gathered over the past 24 hours enabled Israel to target and claim the deaths of three senior Iranian officials.

Khatib had also been under international scrutiny. In 2022, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned him for allegedly overseeing cyber activities targeting the United States and its allies.

He was reported to have joined the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in 1980, shortly after the Iranian Revolution.

Katz warned that further developments could follow, saying the conflict would continue on multiple fronts, including operations targeting Iran and the Lebanon-based group Hezbollah.

The claim, if confirmed, would mark a significant escalation and a major blow to Iran’s intelligence leadership, from Israel’s perspective.