Israeli Strike Kills Hezbollah Leader and Iranian Revolutionary Guard General, Reports Confirm

A significant Iranian Revolutionary Guard general, Gen. Abbas Nilforushan, was reportedly killed in an Israeli airstrike that also resulted in the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, as per Iranian media reports on Saturday. This event has added to the escalating tensions in the region as a nearly yearlong conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza inches closer to potentially evolving into a broader regional crisis.
Gen. Nilforushan, aged 58, lost his life on Friday during the airstrike in Lebanon, which also claimed the life of Nasrallah, according to the state-owned Tehran Times. Confirmation of Nilforushan’s death was provided by Ahmad Reza Pour Khaghan, the deputy head of Iran’s judiciary, who described him as a “guest to the people of Lebanon,” according to the state-run IRNA news agency.
Khaghan stated that Iran had the right to retaliate in accordance with international law. Nilforushan had been identified by the U.S. Treasury as the deputy commander for operations in the Revolutionary Guard and was sanctioned in 2022 for leading an organization involved in quelling protests. These sanctions were imposed during widespread demonstrations in Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini after being arrested for not complying with police demands related to wearing a hijab.
Aside from his role in domestic affairs, Nilforushan also had a presence in the Syrian conflict, where he supported President Bashar Assad in the prolonged war stemming from the Arab Spring in 2011. His military career commenced during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. Iranian state television previously referred to him as a “comrade” of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the former head of the Quds Force who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Baghdad in 2020.
The incident involving the death of Gen. Nilforushan and Nasrallah has added a new layer of complexity to the already strained relationships in the region, sparking concerns about potential retaliatory actions and further destabilization.