IRGC Officer Killed in US-Israel Airstrike Hours After ‘Surprise’ Warning

Tehran, March 20 (TNA) A senior officer of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was killed in a US-Israel airstrike shortly after issuing a strong warning to what he called the “enemy.” The IRGC confirmed that its spokesperson, Ali Mohammad Naini, was “martyred” in what it described as a “criminal and cowardly terrorist attack” carried out by the American-Israeli side at dawn.

The development has escalated tensions in the region, particularly in the Gulf, where military activity has intensified in recent days. In its statement, the IRGC praised Naini’s contributions, stating that his ideas and strategies in “soft war” would continue to inspire Iran’s forces against what it termed “arrogant powers.”

Hours before the strike, Naini had issued a defiant message, warning of a forthcoming “surprise” aimed at countering US naval presence in the Gulf. In his final remarks, he also dismissed claims made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had suggested that Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities had been weakened.

Naini asserted that Iran’s missile program had reached its “highest levels,” despite ongoing conflict and pressure from both the United States and Israel, signalling Tehran’s continued strategic defiance.