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| Sardar Mohammad Reza Zahedi | |
|---|---|
 Zahedi in 2017 | |
| Other name(s) | Mohammad Riza Zahdi Reza Mahdavi Hasan Mahdawi Ali Reza Zahedi Ali Zahedi |
| Born | (1960-11-02)2 November 1960 Isfahan, Iran |
| Died | 1 April 2024(2024-04-01) (aged 63) Iranian Consulate, Mezzeh, Damascus, Syria |
| Allegiance |  Iran |
| Service |  Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps |
| Years of service | 1979–2024 |
| Rank | Brigadier General |
| Unit | Quds Force |
| Commands | |
| Battles / wars | |
Mohammad Reza Zahedi (Template:Lang-fa; 2 November 1960 – 1 April 2024) was an Iranian military officer in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He previously commanded the Air Force, the Ground Force and, at the time of his death, the Quds Force in Lebanon and Syria, designated as a terrorist organisation by Israel, Canada, the United States, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain.
Zahedi was killed by an Israeli airstrike on the Iranian consulate in the Mezzeh district of Damascus. According to The Guardian, Zahedi was most likely a critical figure in Tehran's relationship with Hezbollah and Syria's president Bashar al-Assad.
Military career
Zahedi joined the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in 1979 and served as a mid-level officer during the Iran-Iraq War. He led the 44th Qamar Beni Hashem Division from 1983 to 1986 and later headed the 14th Imam Hossein Division in the IRGC from 1986 until 1991. He was commander of the Thar-Allah base and had been the deputy of IRGC operations. On 21 January 2006, he was appointed Commander of the Ground Force of Islamic Revolution Guards Corps. From 2007 to 2015, he was the head of the Quds Force in Syria and Lebanon.
Quds Force
In 1998, Qasem Soleimani, the new commander of the Quds Force, appointed Zahedi as its Lebanon Corps leader, responsible for providing arms and technical expertise to Hezbollah. According to Arash Azizi, this appointment and that of Hossein Sheikholeslam as Iranian ambassador to Syria were 1998 indications of Soleimani's determination to strengthen Hezbollah in Lebanon and renewal of Iranian–Syrian diplomatic-military collaboration.
Zahedi's first tenure as leader of the Lebanon Corps lasted until 2002. In this capacity, he was instrumental in upgrading Hezbollah's capability for attacks on the Israeli forces occupying Southern Lebanon and in planning Hezbollah's spring 2000 offensive that resulted in the defeat of the Israeli proxy Lebanese Forces militia and the final withdrawal of the Israel Defense Forces from Lebanon, which ended the South Lebanon conflict in Hezbollah's favor.
After the Israeli withdrawal and until the end of his first tenure as Lebanon Corps' leader, Zahedi is thought to have been part of a small joint IRGC–Hezbollah command cadre, including Soleimani, General Ahmad Kazemi and Hezbollah chief of military operations Imad Mughniyeh, responsible for directing the construction of a large overground and underground fortification network in Southern Lebanon, which would aid Hezbollah in the 2006 Lebanon War.
In 2008, Soleimani appointed Zahedi to the position of commander of the Quds Force's Lebanon Corps for the second time. His second tenure lasted until his assassination in 2024. Iran's involvement in the Syrian Civil War on the side of the government of Bashar al-Assad has been a source of contention for Israel.
Death
Main article: 2024 Iranian consulate airstrike in DamascusOn 1 April 2024, Zahedi was killed by an Israeli airstrike that targeted the consulate annex building adjacent to the Iranian embassy in Damascus. Between five and seven people were killed in the airstrike, according to the Iranian ambassador to Syria, Hossein Akbari. The strike caused "massive destruction" to the consulate building as well as damage to neighboring buildings, according to Syrian state media. He is the most senior IRGC officer to be killed since the assassination of Qasem Soleimani by the U.S. in January 2020. After his death, protesters took to the streets in Tehran to condemn the Israeli airstrike on the Iranian consulate. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran condemned the attacks and said the country reserves the right to carry reciprocal actions against the "aggressors" behind the airstrike. Iran has vowed to give a "decisive response". On 13 April 2024 the Iranian military launched hundreds of drones and fired ballistic missiles at Israel.
References
- ^ "Recent OFAC Actions". U.S. Department of the Treasury. 16 August 2010. Archived from the original on 7 April 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
- ^ "Brigadier General Mohammad Reza (Ali) Zahedi". Iran Briefing. 28 January 2012. Archived from the original on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
- ^ "سردار محمدرضا زاهدی که بود؟" [Who was Sardar Mohammad Reza Zahedi?]. Mehr News Agency (in Persian). 1 April 2024. Archived from the original on 1 April 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "Israeli Airstrike Kills Iranian Commander in Syria". Iran International. 1 April 2024. Archived from the original on 5 April 2024. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
- ^ "Leader Appoints New IRGC Ground Force and Air Force Commanders". The Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran. 21 January 2006. Archived from the original on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
- ^ "Iran says Israel bombs its embassy in Syria, kills commanders". Reuters. Damascus. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
- "Israeli airstrike on Iran consulate in Syria kills six including IRGC commander". The Guardian. 1 April 2024. Archived from the original on 1 April 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- "Mohammad Reza Zahedi: who was the Iranian commander killed in an Israeli strike in Syria?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- Atay Alam, Hande; Pourahmadi, Adam; John, Tara; Kent, Lauren; Goodwin, Allegra (1 April 2024). "Top Iranian commander killed in attack on consulate in Syria, Iran state-affiliated media reports". CNN. Archived from the original on 5 April 2024. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
- Ravid, Barak (1 April 2024). "Top Iranian general killed by Israeli airstrike: sources". Axios. Archived from the original on 5 April 2024. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
- "Senior Iranian commander killed in Israeli strike, Iran state media says". BBC News. April 2024. Archived from the original on 1 April 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- Williams, Dan; Hafezi, Parisa (13 April 2024). "Sirens and blasts sound across Israel after Iran launches drone attack". Reuters. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
External links
Media related to Mohammad-Reza Zahedi at Wikimedia Commons
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byAhmad Kazemi | Commander of the Revolutionary Guard Air Force 25 August 2005 – 21 January 2006 |
Succeeded byHossein Salamias Commander of Aerospace Force |
| Preceded byAhmad Kazemi | Commander of the Revolutionary Guard Ground Force 21 January 2006 – 13 July 2008 |
Succeeded byMohammad Jafar Asadi |
| Commanders of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps | ||
|---|---|---|
| Commander-in-Chief |
|  |
| Chief of Joint Staff | ||
| Ground Force | ||
| Aerospace Force | ||
| Navy | ||
| Quds Force | ||
| Mobilization Force | ||
| Intelligence | ||
| Intelligence Protection |
| |
| Supreme Leader Representative | ||
| Ministers |
| |
 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps sardars | ||
- 1960 births
- 2024 deaths
- Assassinated Iranian people
- Assassinations in Syria
- Deaths by Israeli airstrikes
- Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps brigadier generals
- Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel of the Syrian civil war
- Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel of the Iran–Iraq War
- Military personnel from Isfahan
- Military personnel killed in the Israel–Hamas war
- Quds Force personnel
- Targeted killing by Israel