Iran Confirms Death Of Intelligence Minister As US Counterterror Chief Resigns Over War (Worthy News In-Depth)
by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent
WASHINGTON/JERUSALEM/TEHRAN (Worthy News) – Tehran confirmed Wednesday that Israel killed several senior Iranian security officials in a major blow to the Islamic Republic’s leadership as part of a U.S.-Israeli operation, while a top Trump administration official resigned in protest over the escalating war.
Iranian state-run television announced that intelligence minister Esmaeil Khatib, who was born in 1961, was among those killed, confirming Israeli claims.
Earlier, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Khatib was killed in an overnight airstrike in Iran.
They added that Khatib, who had served as intelligence minister since 2021, was targeted by Israeli Air Force fighter jets in the capital, Tehran.
The military described Iran’s Intelligence Ministry as “the Iranian terrorist regime’s primary intelligence organization,” adding that it “played a key role in supporting the regime’s repression and terrorist activities.”
ISRAEL TARGETS IRANIAN INTELLIGENCE
The ministry “possesses advanced intelligence capabilities, overseeing surveillance, espionage, and the execution of covert operations worldwide, particularly against the State of Israel and Iranian citizens,” the IDF said.
As intelligence minister, Khatib “played a significant role during the recent protests throughout Iran, both with regards to the arrests and killing of protesters, as well as shaping the regime’s intelligence assessment,” the IDF added.
This included the 2022–2023 protests over the death of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish-Iranian woman who died in custody after being detained by Iran’s morality police for allegedly violating the country’s strict dress code.
Her death sparked nationwide protests in which more than 500 people were killed and over 20,000 were detained, according to rights groups and a United Nations fact-finding mission.
Khatib reportedly also played a role in subsequent government crackdowns on protesters. Some health officials and advocacy groups have claimed that more than 30,000 people were killed in later crackdowns. However, these estimates remain disputed and have not been independently verified, in part due to restrictions on reporting. Tehran has reported far lower figures and has described many of the thousands killed as “terrorists” and rioters.
The IDF said Khatib also led the ministry’s “terror activities against Israeli and American targets around the world, as well as activities directed against targets within Israel” during the current war.
Separately, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, and General Gholam Reza Soleimani, head of the Revolutionary Guard’s Basij force, were “eliminated” in overnight strikes.
Iran has confirmed the killing of Soleimani, but there was no immediate confirmation of Larijani’s death.
The strikes come as Iran faces one of its most severe crises in decades following earlier Israeli attacks that reportedly killed senior leadership figures, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on the first day of the conflict.
Amid the escalation, U.S. National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent, 45, resigned, becoming the most senior Trump administration official to step down over the war.
TRUMP DISMISSES CRITICISM
In a letter posted online, Kent said Iran posed “no imminent threat” to the United States and urged President Donald J. Trump to “reverse course.”
He argued the administration had “started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” calling the justification for the conflict “a lie.”
Kent, a former U.S. Special Forces soldier and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer, is also known for his personal loss: his wife, Navy cryptologic technician Shannon Kent, was killed in a bombing in Syria in 2019.
He said he could not support “sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people.”
The White House rejected Kent’s claims, saying Trump had “strong and compelling evidence” that Iran was preparing to attack the United States.
HORMUZ REMAINS DISRUPTED
Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump described Kent as a “nice guy” but “weak on security,” adding that his resignation showed “it was a good thing that he’s out.”
Officials also dismissed allegations that the president had been influenced by foreign pressure in deciding to support military action.
Tehran responded with waves of missiles and drones targeting Israel and Gulf Arab states, including reported strikes near critical infrastructure and maritime routes.
The Strait of Hormuz — a vital passage for roughly one-fifth of global oil shipments — has been severely disrupted by Iranian threats and attacks, raising fears of a broader economic shock.
NATO military alliance allies have so far declined U.S. requests to deploy warships to secure the waterway, prompting sharp criticism from Trump.
The conflict, which began on February 28, has already caused heavy casualties across the region. Health authorities report about 1,300 people killed in Iran and more than 900 in Lebanon, while more than a dozen people have been killed in Israel. The U.S. military says 13 American service members have died and roughly 200 troops have been wounded.
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