For the second time, the Israel Defense Forces have eliminated the Islamic Republic's highest-ranking military officer.
Israeli Air Force jets struck a manned command center in the heart of Tehran, killing Ali Shadmani, Iran's "chief of war staff," who was the most senior operational military commander in the country and the closest adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Shadmani had served as the chief of war staff and commander of the emergency command center of Iran's armed forces, overseeing both the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the regular Iranian army.
He was appointed to command Iran's armed forces at the outset of the current military campaign, replacing his predecessor Alam Ali Rashid, who was eliminated in the opening strike of Operation Rising Lion.
The emergency headquarters he commanded, known as "Khatam al-Anbiya", is tasked with managing Iran's combat operations and approving Iranian fire plans. In his various senior roles, Shadmani had direct influence over Iran's attack strategies against the State of Israel. Prior to the elimination of his predecessor, Shadmani served as deputy commander of the Khatam al-Anbiya emergency headquarters and as head of the operations directorate of Iran's general staff.
His elimination marks yet another blow to Iran's senior military command, continuing a string of high-profile assassinations that have severely disrupted the chain of command of the Islamic Republic's armed forces.
