An Iranian official who issued a warning to Donald Trump last week and threatened to “eliminate” the US has been k!lled in an airstrike.

 

Iranian Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani was k!lled by an Israeli airstrike last night, March 16, according to Iran’s Defence Ministry.

 

The IDF confirmed they targeted Larijani, while also saying a separate strike k!lled the head of the Basji paramilitary force.

 

Just days ago, Larijani warned Trump: “The nation of Iran is not afraid of your empty threats.

 

“Even those bigger than you could not eliminate the Iranian nation. Watch yourselves, or you might be eliminated!”

 

Larijani played a role in the interim leadership council, which steered Iran as the council decided who would succeed Ali Khamenei.

 

Also k!lled in a strike was the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ all-volunteer Basij force, which has been used to suppress demonstrations in the Islamic Republic.

 

General Gholam Reza Soleimani is said to have been k!lled on Monday, but Iran did not immediately acknowledge the militia leader’s d£ath.

 

“The Basij forces are part of the armed apparatus of the Iranian terror regime,” the Israeli military said in its statement.

 

“During internal protests in Iran, particularly in recent periods as demonstrations intensified, Basij forces under Soleimani’s command led the main repression operations, employing severe violence, widespread arrests and the use of force against civilian demonstrators.”

 

The US Treasury lists Soleimani as having been born in 1965. He has been sanctioned by the US, the European Union and other nations over his role in helping suppress dissent for years through the Basij.