“In a precise strike in Tehran: The IDF eliminated the Commander of the Basij Unit,” the Israeli military said in a statement, adding that Soleimani had led the Basij for the past six years.

It said the operation was carried out by the Israeli Air Force based on intelligence.Israeli media reported that Larijani, a senior figure in Iran’s political and security establishment, was also targeted for assassination, though no confirmation on his status was immediately available.

The Basij is a volunteer paramilitary force operating under Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and has played a central role in enforcing internal security.

Israel’s military said the Basij had led “main repression operations” during recent mass protests in Iran, which it cited as part of the rationale for the strike.

Iran experienced widespread unrest that peaked in January, with demonstrations challenging the clerical establishment. According to rights groups, the crackdown that followed resulted in thousands of deaths and tens of thousands of arrests.

The Israeli military said the strikes were part of broader operations that yielded “significant preventive achievements overnight,” quoting Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir.

The targeting of senior Iranian figures in Tehran, if confirmed, would mark a notable escalation in Israel’s operations, extending beyond regional proxy engagements into direct action within Iran’s capital.

There was no immediate response from Iranian authorities regarding the reported strikes or casualties.

The Guards said in a statement published on their official Sepah News website that Netanyahu would remain a target of Iran’s forces, accusing him of responsibility for the deaths of civilians amid the ongoing conflict.

“If this child-killing criminal is alive, we will continue to pursue and kill him with full force,” the IRGC said, referring to the Israeli premier.

The statement reflects a sharp escalation in language from Iran’s elite military force as the confrontation involving Iran, Israel and the United States widens. Iranian officials have repeatedly accused Israel of attacks against Iranian interests and leadership figures, while Israel says it is acting to neutralize threats posed by Tehran and its regional allies.

.The IRGC, which answers directly to Iran’s Supreme Leader and wields significant influence over the country’s military operations abroad, has often issued warnings against Israeli leadership during periods of heightened tensions.

The threat comes as the conflict between Israel and Iran-backed forces has expanded beyond their borders, drawing in the United States and affecting multiple countries across the Middle East.

Regional tensions have surged following a series of strikes and counter-strikes involving Israeli forces, Iranian military assets and allied groups.

Governments and international organizations have warned that the conflict risks further destabilizing an already volatile region.

Netanyahu has been a central figure in Israel’s security policy toward Iran, repeatedly warning about Tehran’s military capabilities and its support for armed groups across the Middle East.

Iranian leaders, in turn, have blamed Israel for attacks on Iranian personnel and infrastructure, including alleged covert operations targeting Iranian military and nuclear facilities.

The offer targets 10 officials associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a powerful military force created after the Iranian Revolution and tasked with safeguarding Iran’s clerical political system. The State Department said the individuals command or direct elements of the IRGC that it accuses of planning and executing attacks abroad.

Mojtaba Khamenei assumed Iran’s highest political and religious office after his father, Ali Khamenei, was killed along with several senior Iranian officials in joint U.S. and Israeli strikes that began on Feb. 28.

The younger Khamenei is believed to have been wounded in the attacks and has not appeared publicly since the start of the conflict, though he issued his first statement on Thursday.

In addition to the supreme leader, the reward notice seeks information about Iran’s national security chief Ali Larijani, Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib, Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni and two officials from Khamenei’s office.

Larijani appeared on Friday in video footage verified by Reuters alongside Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi during a rally in Tehran.

The appearance came despite comments by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth suggesting that Iran’s leadership was hiding underground amid ongoing military strikes.

The State Department website also lists four additional officials connected to the IRGC, including the corps’ commander and the secretary of Iran’s defense council, though their names and images were not provided.

Washington has designated the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization and accuses it of orchestrating attacks that have killed U.S. citizens. U.S. officials have also alleged that Iran planned assassination attempts against U.S. President Donald Trump and other American officials in retaliation for the killing of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani in 2020.

Iran denies supporting terrorism and has repeatedly rejected U.S. accusations as politically motivated efforts to justify sanctions and pressure campaigns.Officials from the Revolutionary Guards were not immediately available for comment on Friday, Iran’s weekly day of rest.

Iran’s mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The ministry said it had summoned Iran’s ambassador in Bangkok to seek clarification on the circumstances surrounding the incident and to obtain details about the attack on the vessel.

In a statement, the Thai Foreign Ministry said it was requesting a formal explanation from Iranian authorities and pressing for an apology over the damage inflicted on the ship.

Officials said the projectile strike triggered a blaze on board, prompting the crew to evacuate the vessel for safety.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement carried by the Tasnim News Agency that the vessel had been “fired upon by Iranian fighters,” according to the report.

The statement did not provide further details about the circumstances that led to the strike.

The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints for energy shipments, has come under heightened scrutiny amid rising tensions linked to the conflict involving Iran and its regional adversaries.

The incident involving the Thai vessel adds to growing concerns about risks to commercial shipping passing through the narrow waterway.

Mohammad Mohaddesin, head of foreign policy at the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said during a news conference in Paris that sustained airstrikes had weakened elements of Iran’s military and security apparatus but would not be sufficient to remove the ruling system.

“The 12-day war in June, and the current war, now in its 12th day, proved that bombings cannot overthrow the regime,” Mohaddesin said, adding that political change would require widespread public mobilization inside Iran.

Mohaddesin said that even a substantial deployment of foreign troops would be unlikely to achieve regime change without support from the Iranian population.

“You need a popular uprising,” he said, arguing that internal resistance combined with popular protest would be necessary to challenge the country’s leadership.

He added that he did not consider a deployment of U.S. ground troops a realistic scenario in the current conflict.

Nearly two weeks of fighting have killed around 2,000 people in Iran, including the country’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, according to figures cited in the conflict, while military strikes have damaged parts of Iran’s defence and security infrastructure.

Iran has responded with retaliatory actions that have widened tensions across the Middle East and disrupted global energy markets and transport routes. The country’s powerful security force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has tightened its control and warned it would suppress any unrest.

The NCRI, also known by its Farsi name Mujahideen-e-Khalq, was designated as a terrorist organisation by the United States until 2012 and remains banned in Iran. Analysts say its level of support inside the country is difficult to assess.

Along with monarchist groups supporting Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s former shah, it is among the few opposition movements outside the country capable of organizing political gatherings and advocacy efforts.

Mohaddesin acknowledged that his organisation alone could not bring down Iran’s political system but said large-scale protests similar to demonstrations earlier this year could re-emerge once airstrikes cease and eventually shift the balance of power.

Israeli officials have said weakening Iran’s security structures is among the objectives of the campaign, arguing it could enable Iranians to determine their own political future.

The Israeli military said in a statement on its official Telegram account that missiles had been launched from Iran toward the State of Israel and that defensive systems were operating to counter the threat.

Air raid sirens sounded across Jerusalem, according to AFP journalists on the ground, who also reported hearing explosions in the distance during the interception attempts.

A short time after the alert, Israel’s military said civilians were permitted to leave protected shelters, indicating the immediate threat had passed.

Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency services said there were no immediate reports of direct casualties from the missile fire. However, emergency teams were treating a small number of people who sustained injuries while moving toward protected areas during the alert.

Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported that several people were injured near Tel Aviv following the Iranian missile strikes, though the extent of the damage was not immediately clear.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted a satellite communications center in Haifa as well as Israeli military bases during the missile attack.

The Guards also said they struck U.S. targets elsewhere in the Middle East, including locations in Iraqi Kurdistan and the U.S. Fifth Fleet naval base in Bahrain, according to a statement published on the Sepah News website.

In the statement, the Guards said they would continue sustained attacks against what they described as enemy targets during the conflict.

President Donald Trump issued the warning after global financial markets swung sharply on Monday amid signs that Iran’s security establishment was consolidating behind newly appointed Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, signalling Tehran may be preparing for a prolonged confrontation.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it would prevent “one litre of oil” from leaving the Middle East if strikes by the United States and Israel persist, according to Iranian state media.

Trump said Washington had already inflicted heavy damage on Iran’s military infrastructure and warned that any attempt by Tehran to halt tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz would trigger far stronger U.S. retaliation.

“We will hit them so hard that it will not be possible for them or anybody else helping them to ever recover that section of the world,” Trump said during a news conference on Monday.

In a later post on his Truth Social platform, Trump reiterated that warning, saying the United States would strike Iran “twenty times harder” if the country attempted to block oil shipments through the narrow waterway, which handles roughly one-fifth of global crude supply.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards responded by saying the end of the conflict would be determined by Tehran, not Washington. A spokesperson quoted by state media said Iran would ensure that no oil exports leave the region if the attacks by the United States and Israel continue.

The comments came as large crowds gathered in Iran in support of Mojtaba Khamenei, according to Iranian media, suggesting the country’s leadership is seeking to demonstrate domestic backing following the escalation of hostilities.

Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations said at least 1,332 Iranian civilians have been killed and thousands wounded since the United States and Israel launched air and missile strikes across Iran at the end of February.

Washington and its allies say the strikes are aimed at crippling Iran’s missile capabilities and nuclear programme. Israel has said its objective is to topple Iran’s clerical leadership, while Trump has said the conflict could end only if Tehran accepts a government compliant with U.S. demands.

Financial markets reacted sharply to the escalating rhetoric. Crude oil prices and global stock markets swung between gains and losses as investors weighed the risk that the conflict could disrupt energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil shipping routes.