Israel has announced the killing of Alireza Tangsiri, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, in a targeted strike linked to attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz confirmed the operation on Thursday, stating that Tangsiri and other senior naval officers were eliminated.
Katz said Tangsiri was “directly responsible for the terrorist act of bombing and blocking the Strait of Hormuz.”
Tangsiri, who had commanded the IRGC Navy since 2018, had repeatedly threatened to close the strategic waterway to vessels linked to Iran’s adversaries. In 2019 he warned that Iran would shut the strait if its oil exports were disrupted by sanctions
The announcement comes amid the ongoing US-Israeli military campaign that began after the February 28 strikes on Tehran which killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several other top officials.
Iranian authorities have not yet issued an official response to the claim.
