Who was Ismail Khatib? Israel eliminated the third major Iranian leader in 24 hours; stir in Tehran:

News India Live, Digital Desk: Ismail Khatib was the ‘Intelligence Minister’ of Iran, who held the post since 2021. He was considered very close and trusted by Iran’s former supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Israel claims that Khatib was not only responsible for suppressing opponents within Iran, but also conducting cyber attacks and espionage networks against Israeli and American targets abroad.

IDF’s ‘Operation Roaring Lion’: 3 big kills in 2 days

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have broken the back of Iran’s military and intelligence infrastructure in the last two days. Before Ismail Khatib, Israel targeted two more big leaders:

Ali Larijani: Head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and one of the most powerful figures after Khamenei. (Death on 17 March)

Gholamreza Soleimani: Commander of Iran’s paramilitary force ‘Basij Force’. (Death on 17 March)

Ismail Khatib: Iran’s Intelligence Minister. (Death on 18 March)

Midnight attack in Tehran

According to reports, Ismail Khatib was present at a safe house in Tehran, which was tracked by the Israeli intelligence agency ‘Mossad’.

Precise Attack: Israeli warplanes attacked the building where Khatib was meeting with his superiors with ‘bunker buster’ bombs.

Benjamin Netanyahu’s statement: Prime Minister Netanyahu has said that no Iranian official included in Israel’s hit list will be spared.

Why was Ismail Khatib ‘most wanted’?

Mastermind of cyber attacks: America had imposed sanctions on Khatib in 2022. He was accused of leading ransomware and cyber espionage attacks on US infrastructure.

Internal Repression: Khatib’s ministry played a key role in crushing the 2022 ‘Women, Life, Freedom’ protests and the recent 2026 protests.

Regional Network: They were the main hub for sharing intelligence to groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas.

Iran’s retaliation and global crisis

Iran has vowed ‘definite revenge’ after Ismail Khatib’s death:

Missile Attack: Iran has fired missiles with multiple warheads at Tel Aviv and central Israel.

Attack on Gulf countries: Iran has also started targeting the energy bases of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and UAE to put pressure on America.

Strait of Hormuz: Iran has warned of completely closing this trade route, which could deepen the global oil crisis.