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Ali Larijani, Iran’s security chief, killed in overnight attacks: Israel Defence Minister

March 17, 2026 6 min read International Relations Internal Security GS2
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What Happened

  • Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz announced on March 17, 2026 that Ali Larijani — secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) and one of the Islamic Republic's most powerful officials — had been killed in Israeli airstrikes overnight, along with the commander of Iran's Basij paramilitary force, Gholamreza Soleimani.
  • The strikes came in the third week of an active US-Israel military campaign against Iran that began on approximately February 28, 2026, following the killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu framed Larijani's killing as part of a strategy to give Iranians "a chance to remove their rulers," signalling a policy of systematic elimination of Iran's security leadership.
  • Iran's state media published what appeared to be a handwritten note by Larijani, though the authenticity and timing were disputed; Tehran did not immediately confirm his death.
  • The killing represents the single most significant targeted assassination since Khamenei's death, compounding the leadership crisis within the Islamic Republic.

Static Topic Bridges

Iran's Supreme National Security Council: Structure and Significance

Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) is the highest body responsible for national security, foreign policy, and defence decisions in the Islamic Republic. Established under Article 176 of the Constitution of Iran (1989 revision), the SNSC is chaired by the President, with permanent members including the heads of the three branches of government, the Chief of the Supreme Command Council of the Armed Forces, and other key officials. The Supreme Leader's representatives also sit on the council, meaning its decisions ultimately reflect Khamenei's (or his successor's) authority. The SNSC has historically overseen Iran's nuclear negotiations, decisions on proxy strategy (Hezbollah, Houthis, Hamas), and responses to foreign military threats.

  • Article 176 of the Iranian Constitution (as revised in 1989) establishes the SNSC.
  • The SNSC secretary historically functions as Iran's chief nuclear negotiator and chief security strategist.
  • Ali Larijani served as SNSC secretary from 2005 to 2007 (overseeing early nuclear talks with Europe) and was reappointed in August 2025 under President Masoud Pezeshkian.
  • With both Khamenei and Larijani killed in the space of three weeks, Iran's institutional security decision-making capacity has been severely disrupted.

Connection to this news: Larijani's killing eliminates the official who was coordinating Iran's response to the US-Israel military campaign — a strategic assassination designed to degrade Iran's command and control during an active conflict.

The Basij: Iran's Internal Control Force and Its Role in the IRGC

The Basij (Sazman-e Basij-e Mostazafin — Organisation for the Mobilisation of the Oppressed) is a paramilitary volunteer militia under the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Founded in 1979 by Ayatollah Khomeini after the revolution, the Basij was institutionalised as an instrument for internal suppression of dissent and as a supplement to regular military forces. The Basij played a critical role in suppressing the 2009 Green Movement, the 2019-20 protests following petrol price hikes, and the 2022-23 "Woman, Life, Freedom" protests following Mahsa Amini's death. The Basij commander, killed alongside Larijani in the March 17 strikes, was Gholamreza Soleimani — a different person from Qasem Soleimani, the IRGC Quds Force commander killed by the United States in January 2020.

  • Basij membership: estimated 600,000 active members; millions of reservists.
  • Basij is a subdivision of the IRGC; the IRGC as a whole is designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the United States (since 2019).
  • The killing of the Basij commander weakens Iran's domestic repression capability at a moment of military crisis — potentially opening space for internal political change.
  • Qasem Soleimani (Quds Force) was killed by a US drone strike in Baghdad on January 3, 2020 — the precedent for high-level Israeli/US targeted killings of Iranian commanders.

Connection to this news: The dual killing of the SNSC chief and the Basij commander is a coordinated decapitation strategy — targeting both Iran's national security decision-making and its internal control apparatus simultaneously.

Targeted Killings in International Law

Targeted killings — deliberate use of lethal force against specific individuals outside of battlefield combat — are one of the most contested areas of international law. Under Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, the use of force against another state's sovereignty is prohibited except in self-defence (Article 51) or with UNSC authorisation (Chapter VII). Israel has operated under a "right to self-defence" doctrine for targeted killings, citing Iran's proxy network (Hezbollah, Hamas, IRGC Quds Force operations) as ongoing armed attacks. The United States has similarly used drone strikes against individuals like Qasem Soleimani, arguing they constituted lawful acts of self-defence under Article 51.

  • UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Killings has consistently held that targeted killings outside active hostilities may violate the right to life under international human rights law.
  • During an active armed conflict (which the US-Israel-Iran war of 2026 constitutes), targeting military commanders is generally lawful under IHL if they are combatants.
  • The key legal question is whether Iran's SNSC secretary — a political/administrative official — qualifies as a "combatant" under IHL or is a protected civilian official.
  • Netanyahu's framing of Larijani's killing as giving Iranians "a chance to remove their rulers" blurs military and political targeting — legally problematic under IHL.

Connection to this news: The killing of Larijani illustrates the tension between IHL's lawful targeting of military commanders and the prohibition on targeting political officials — a live debate as the US-Israel campaign escalates.

Iran-Israel Conflict: Historical Roots and Escalation Arc

Iran and Israel have never shared diplomatic relations since the Islamic Revolution of 1979; the Shah's Iran was one of the first Muslim-majority countries to recognise Israel. After the revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini declared Israel illegitimate and Iran adopted an explicitly anti-Zionist foreign policy. The conflict between the two states has been waged primarily through proxy forces (Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, Houthi missiles from Yemen, IRGC operations in Syria and Iraq) and through competing covert operations — Israel's targeted killings of Iranian nuclear scientists, and Iran's alleged attacks on Israeli shipping. The April 2024 direct Iranian missile attack on Israel (Operation True Promise) and Israel's retaliation marked the first direct state-on-state military exchanges between the two. The February-March 2026 war represents a full-scale armed conflict between the US-Israel alliance and Iran.

  • Iran's "Axis of Resistance": Hezbollah (Lebanon), Hamas (Gaza), Islamic Jihad (Palestine), Houthis (Yemen), PMF (Iraq) — all receive IRGC training and funding.
  • Qasem Soleimani, architect of Iran's proxy network, was killed by the US in January 2020 — the most significant assassination before the current war.
  • Iran attacked Israel directly for the first time in April 2024 using over 300 drones and missiles (Operation True Promise).
  • The 2026 war began on approximately February 28 with Khamenei's death; Larijani's killing on March 17 comes on Day 17 of the conflict.

Connection to this news: Larijani's killing reflects the systematic nature of Israel's campaign to destroy Iran's strategic leadership — a continuation of the decades-long covert war now fought openly.

Key Facts & Data

  • Ali Larijani: born June 3, 1958; SNSC secretary from 2005–2007 and again from August 2025; former Majlis speaker 2008–2020.
  • Article 176 of Iran's Constitution: establishes the Supreme National Security Council.
  • Basij founded: 1979 by Khomeini; ~600,000 active members under IRGC command.
  • Gholamreza Soleimani: Basij commander killed alongside Larijani (different from Qasem Soleimani).
  • Qasem Soleimani killed: January 3, 2020, US drone strike, Baghdad airport.
  • Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei killed: approximately February 28, 2026.
  • Operation True Promise (April 2024): Iran's first direct missile/drone attack on Israel — over 300 projectiles fired.
  • The US-Israel-Iran war entered its 17th day on March 17, 2026.