In Iran, a senior Revolutionary Guard officer was assassinated. Two strangers opened fire on Colonel Sayad Khodai from a motorcycle, the semi-official Tasmin news agency reported yesterday, citing informed sources. The attack is reminiscent of attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists, which were also committed from motorcycles. In Iran, Israel was blamed for these attacks.
The semi-official Iranian news agency ISNA reported yesterday that members of an Israeli intelligence network were tracked down and arrested by the Revolutionary Guards. The Israeli prime minister’s office, responsible for the Mossad intelligence service, declined to comment on the events in Tehran.
The Revolutionary Guard blamed “anti-revolutionary opponents” of the Islamic Republic for Khodai’s assassination. Khodai was also a member of the so-called defenders of shrines. These protect Shia holy sites in Iraq and Syria from other groups such as the Islamic State.