Iran confirms death of top official, Ali Mohammad in US-Israel airstrike

Iran has suffered another significant blow amid ongoing airstrikes by the U.S. and Israel, with reports confirming the death of a senior official. Ali Mohammad Naini, spokesperson and deputy head of public relations for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), was reportedly killed in the latest strike, Iranian state TV confirmed on Friday.

Mehr News reported: “The spokesman of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), General Ali Mohammad Naeini, was martyred in an aerial aggression on Friday.” The IRGC statement noted that he was targeted during the early hours of Friday, the final day of the fasting month of Ramadan.

Before his death, Naini had issued a statement emphasizing Iran’s ongoing missile capabilities despite the strikes from Israel and the United States, and reiterated that the conflict would continue. “These people expect the war to continue until the enemy is completely exhausted,” he said, adding, “This war must end when the shadow of war is lifted from the country.”

The Israel Air Force confirmed the strike on X (formerly Twitter), stating: “Guided by Military Intelligence, our forces struck overnight and eliminated Ali Na’ayini, spokesperson and head of the public relations apparatus of the Revolutionary Guards.”

Naini had served in multiple propaganda and communication roles within the IRGC, and in recent years acted as the chief disseminator of the organization’s messaging across the Middle East. According to Israeli sources, his role included spreading propaganda to promote actions against Israel from various fronts.