Israel killed Irans Minister of Intelligence Esmaeil Khatib in a precision strike overnight, a senior Israeli official told Fox News Wednesday.
The official said the strike was enabled by a joint U.S.-Israeli intelligence effort and described Khatib as a central player in plots targeting American officials.
“This man had American blood on his hands. His network specifically targeted current and former U.S. officials, including President ,” the official added.
Khatib had previously survived a sweeping strike on Irans senior leadership at the “Defense Council” compound in Tehran during the , where more than 40 Iranian leaders were killed in roughly 40 seconds, according to the official.
He was reportedly the only person to survive the initial attack.
“Today, he met the fate of his combatant comrades,” the official told Fox News.
Israel has targeted and killed several senior Iranian leaders since the start of the war, including Ayatollah , Ali Larijani, secretary of Irans Supreme National Security Council, Gen. Gholamreza Soleimani, commander of Irans Basij unit, and Mohammad Pakpour, commander of Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The Israel Defense Forces said Khatib played a central role in directing crackdowns on protesters, including arrests and killings during and the nationwide demonstrations sparked by the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini.
The Treasury Departments Office of Foreign Assets Control in 2022 for his role in leading Irans Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS), which U.S. officials said was responsible for cyberattacks against the United States and its allies.Â
Treasury said the ministry oversaw targeting government and private-sector organizations, including disruptive attacks on critical infrastructure.
United Against Nuclear Iran, a non-partisan advocacy group, said Khatib enlisted in the IRGC at the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War in 1980 and studied under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic.
He joined MOIS in 1985 or 1986 after it was established in 1983.
The State Departments offered up to $10 million for information on senior Iranian security figures tied to the IRGC and its networks, including Khatib.
