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Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has killed considered one of its personal high-ranking officers for suspected espionage, in accordance with a Thursday report.
Col. Ali Esmailzadeh was killed on Monday over suspicions he leaked data associated to the assassination of the IRGC’s Col. Hassan Sayyad Khodaei late final month, Iran Worldwide reported.
Esmailzadeh died in a fall from his roof in Karaj, Iran, in an incident the IRGC falsely framed as a suicide, the report mentioned.
He was near Khodaei, who was gunned down in Tehran on Could 22. Each he and Esmailzadeh had been members of the IRGC’s so-called Unit 840, a shadowy division inside the IRGC’s expeditionary Quds Drive that carries out kidnappings and assassinations outdoors of Iran, the report mentioned.
After Khodaei’s killing, the IRGC started attempting to find safety leaks and have become suspicious of Esmailzadeh. He was then thrown from his roof, however the IRGC advised his household he died by suicide as a result of he was distraught over his separation from his spouse, Iran Worldwide mentioned, citing “sources in Iran.”
The Persian-language outlet is recognized with Iran’s political opposition. It was launched in 2017, is predicated in London and reaches hundreds of thousands of Iranians in Iran and all over the world. It’s reportedly funded by Saudi Arabia, Iran’s regional foe.
Khodaei was shot 5 instances in his automotive by two unidentified gunmen on motorbikes in the midst of Tehran. He reportedly was concerned in killings and abductions outdoors of Iran, together with makes an attempt to focus on Israelis.
The physique of a senior member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard recognized as Col. Hassan Sayad Khodaei, who was assassinated in Tehran on Could 22, 2022. Inset: Khodaei (Twitter/screenshot)
Iranian authorities have but to pin down the suspects in Khodaei’s killing, regardless that the incident happened within the coronary heart of one of the crucial safe areas in Tehran — Mohahedin-e Eslam Road, house to different senior officers within the IRGC and its elite Quds Drive.
The pinnacle of the IRGC blamed “the Zionists” for the assassination and vowed revenge.
Israel, which has not formally commented on the incident, reportedly raised the safety alert degree at its embassies and consulates all over the world, fearing a retaliatory Iranian assault.
An unnamed intelligence official advised the New York Occasions that Israel advised US officers it was behind the assassination. A senior Israeli MK denied this.
Israel has issued journey warnings for Turkey because of fears of an Iranian response to the assassination. In an uncommon transfer, the Nationwide Safety Council explicitly recognized “Iranian terrorist operatives” as being the supply of the risk to Israelis in Turkey and close by nations.
Khodaei’s assassination was probably the most high-profile killing inside Iran because the November 2020 killing of prime nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.
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