Israeli Defense Minister Katz officially confirmed on the 26th (local time) that an airstrike killed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' naval commander, who had directed operational blockades of the Strait of Hormuz.
At a morning situation assessment meeting with senior military leaders, Defense Minister Katz said the Israel Defense Forces had eliminated IRGC naval commander Alireza Tangsiri.
Katz accused Tangsiri of personally directing terror operations, including disrupting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and laying mines. He said the strike was \"a clear message\" to the IRGC and warned, \"The Israel Defense Forces will pursue IRGC operatives to the end and eliminate them one by one.\"
Katz added, \"We will continue operations across Iran with all available forces to achieve our war objectives.\"
Earlier, local outlets including the Times of Israel, citing government sources, reported that Tangsiri was killed in an airstrike on Bandar Abbas, the southern Iranian port city on the Strait of Hormuz.
Officials said Tangsiri had been responsible for directing attempts to block and control the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global energy shipping chokepoint. The Iranian military has not yet confirmed his death.
Analysts say Tangsiri, a brigadier-general–rank officer who was appointed IRGC naval commander in 2018, modernized the force by upgrading fast-attack craft, naval mines, anti-ship missiles and unmanned surface vessels (drone boats).
