By Babatunji Wusu
The Iranian security apparatus has suffered a severe strategic setback following the death of Major General Majid Khademi, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Intelligence Organization. Khademi was killed in the early hours of Monday, April 6, 2026, during a high-precision overnight airstrike in Tehran. The strike is part of a broader wave of coordinated military operations conducted by the United States and Israel against Iranian leadership and strategic infrastructure.
Iranian state media, including the broadcaster IRIB, confirmed Khademi’s death, describing him as a “martyr” of a “criminal terrorist attack by the American-Zionist enemy.” Khademi had only occupied the role since June 2025, having been appointed after his predecessor, Mohammad Kazemi, was also killed in an Israeli strike. His death is being viewed as a significant intelligence failure for the IRGC, as Khademi was specifically tasked with counter-espionage and internal surveillance.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz openly took responsibility for the targeted elimination, framing it as a direct response to Iranian aggression. “The Revolutionary Guards are shooting at civilians and we are eliminating the leaders of the terrorists,” Katz stated on Monday. He further warned that Iran’s leadership is now living “under a constant sense of being targeted,” as Israel continues to “hunt them down one by one.” Beyond the human cost, Katz noted that the day’s strikes also severely damaged Iran’s petrochemical and steel industries, aiming to collapse the “economic pillars” that fund the IRGC.
The strike that killed Khademi was reportedly part of a larger offensive that resulted in at least 25 fatalities across various sites in Iran. This escalation follows months of heightened conflict, including the reported death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February 2026. As both the U.S. and Israel intensify “Operation Epic Fury,” the removal of a figure as central as Khademi suggests a transition into a phase of the conflict focused on the total dismantling of Iran’s top-tier military and intelligence command.
With the repeated elimination of its intelligence chiefs, do you think the IRGC can still maintain its grip on internal security, or is the Iranian command structure reaching a point of total collapse?
Follow us for more
