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Israel announced on Wednesday that it had eliminated Esmail Jatib, Iran's Minister of Intelligence and Security, in a nighttime airstrike against Tehran, marking a new blow to the leadership of the Iranian regime in less than 24 hours.
The day before, Israel had claimed responsibility for the death of Ali Larijani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and considered the most powerful man in the regime following the disappearance of the Supreme Leader Ali Jamenei, as well as that of Gholamreza Soleimani, head of the Basij militia. Both eliminations also occurred as a result of airstrikes.
Jatib, born in 1961 in the South Khorasan province, held the position of Minister of Intelligence since August 2021, appointed by President Ebrahim Raisi.
With decades of experience in Iranian intelligence services —including the Revolutionary Guard and the office of the Supreme Leader— he was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in September 2022 for malicious cyber activities against that country and its allies. An Israeli official quoted by The New York Times described him as "the mastermind behind 17 plots against our leaders."
These casualties are part of a systematic offensive that began on February 28 with Operation Roaring Lion, in which Israel and the United States launched attacks that resulted in the deaths of Khamenei himself, Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, and the commander of the Revolutionary Guard Mohammad Pakpour. In total, the Iranian leadership has lost six of its most prominent figures in less than three weeks.
Iran responded this Wednesday with a barrage of missiles —Khorramshahr-4 and Qadr models armed with cluster munitions— against Israel, causing two deaths in Ramat Gan. Iranian Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, warned on social media: "A wave of global repercussions has just begun and will affect us all, regardless of our wealth, religion, or race."
Israel has also threatened to eliminate Mojtaba Jamenei, the son of the late supreme leader and newly appointed ayatollah by the Assembly of Experts on March 8, who has not made a public appearance since his appointment. The Israeli military spokesman, Brigadier General Effie Defrin, was explicit: "We will locate him, we will find him, and we will neutralize him."
In economic terms, the price of a barrel of oil exceeds 100 dollars, with projections of up to 120-150 dollars if Iran carries out its threat to block the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil is transported. Saudi Arabia is hosting a meeting today of foreign ministers from Arab and Islamic countries to coordinate a diplomatic response to the escalation.
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