Iran’s state-run media reported the death of Mohammad Reza Zahedi, one of the top commanders of the Quds Force, along with his deputy Mohammad Hadi Hajirahimi, in Israeli airstrikes on the regime’s consulate building in Damascus, the capital of Syria, on Monday evening, April 1st.
In an announcement, the IRGC General Public Relations confirmed the deaths of seven of its forces in the Israeli attack on the consulate building and released their names. According to the IRGC announcement, Mohammad Reza Zahedi, Mohammed Hadi Haj Rahimi, Hossein Amanollahi, Seyyed Mehdi Jalalati, Mohsen Sedaqat, Ali Agha Babaei, and Ali Salehi Ruzbahani were the seven individuals killed in the attack.
Tasnim news agency reported that the consulate building, near the Islamic Republic of Iran embassy in Damascus, was completely destroyed in the attack. AFP had previously reported that at least eight people were killed in the Israeli airstrikes on the building.
Hossein Akbari, the Iranian regime’s ambassador in Syria, stated, “Israel targeted this building with six missiles fired from F-35 fighters.”
Reports from the regime referred to Mohammad Reza Zahedi as the senior commander of the Quds Force in Lebanon and Syria, and stated that he is the highest-ranking official of the regime to have been killed since the beginning of the Gaza war. Israeli airstrikes on Syria in January had previously resulted in the death of another Quds Force commander, Seyyed Razi Mousavi.
Zahedi served as the primary contact and negotiator between Tehran and Hezbollah in Lebanon. He was in a meeting with Islamic Jihad officials at the time of the Israeli attack.
Zahedi commanded the Quds Force’s 18,000 Unit and was responsible for smuggling ammunition and precision weapons to Lebanon for Hezbollah.
Mohammad Reza Zahedi was born on November 2, 1960, in Isfahan. He joined the Revolutionary Guards in 1980 and held various command positions during the Iran-Iraq war, including commanding the 44th Qamar Bani Hashem Brigade from 1983 to 1986 and the 14th division of the Imam Hossein Brigade from 1986 to 1991. Zahedi served as the commander of the IRGC’s Ground Forces from 2005 to 2008.
Additionally, he led the IRGC’s Thar-Allah Headquarters from 2005 to 2006 and served as the deputy of IRGC operations from 2006 to 2009. Zahedi worked in the Quds Force from 2008 to 2016, where he commanded the Syrian and Lebanese Corps.
Iran’s Quds Force, a branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), has been instrumental in furthering Iran’s interests and influence beyond its borders.
It has been involved in various conflicts across the Middle East, including providing support to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in its brutal suppression of the Syrian people’s uprising.
The Quds Force has trained and armed various militia groups in Syria, exacerbating the violence and contributing to the suffering of the Syrian population.
Iran’s meddling in Syria has prolonged the conflict and hindered efforts for a peaceful resolution, leading to immense human suffering and displacement.
