Iranian Revolutionary Guard General Killed in Israeli Strike Alongside Nasrallah

Iranian media reported on Saturday that a senior general in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, Gen. Abbas Nilforushan, was killed in the same Israeli airstrike that also claimed the life of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

This marks a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict as Nilforushan’s death adds to the pressure on Iran to respond. His death comes as the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza risks spreading into a broader regional war.

According to Iranian sources, Nilforushan, who was 58 years old, was killed during the strike on Friday. The Tehran Times confirmed the news, and Ahmad Reza Pour Khaghan, Iran’s judiciary deputy head, also acknowledged his death, describing him as a “guest” of the Lebanese people.

Khaghan further mentioned that Iran reserves the right to retaliate under international law. Nilforushan had held a prominent role as the deputy commander for operations in the Revolutionary Guard and had been sanctioned by the U.S. in 2022 for his involvement in suppressing protests in Iran. He also played a significant role in supporting Syria’s President Bashar Assad during Syria’s civil war and had a long military career dating back to the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.

Nilforushan was also noted to have been a close associate of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s Quds Force, who was killed by a U.S. drone strike in Baghdad in 2020.