Live updates: Follow the latest news on US-Iran war
Israel said on Wednesday that it had killed Iran's Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib in an overnight air strike on Tehran, hours after Iran confirmed the death of its national security chief Ali Larijani.
Announcing the killing of Mr Khatib, the Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the military had been authorised to “thwart any senior Iranian who is cornered, without the need for additional approval”. There has been no confirmation of Mr Khatib's death from Iran.
“Today, significant surprises are expected in all arenas that will escalate the war we are waging against Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The intensity of attacks in Iran is increasing,” Mr Katz added.
The killings come more than three weeks into the US-Israeli war on Iran, which has become a regional conflict showing no signs of de-escalation.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi – one of the major political figures still standing – said in an interview aired on Wednesday that he had no interest in a simple ceasefire, but wanted to end the war on “all fronts”.
“We don't believe in a ceasefire. We believe in ending the war on all fronts … and that we witness peace throughout the region, in Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, Iran and other countries of the region,” he told Al Jazeera.
More assassinations
On Tuesday, Iran confirmed that Mr Larijani and Gholamreza Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Basij paramilitary, had been killed in an Israeli strike.
Mr Larijani's death was confirmed by Iran's Supreme National Security Council, which he led as secretary. His son was also killed in the strike on Monday night along with his deputy, Alireza Bayat, the council said. The Basij commander’s death was confirmed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Mr Larijani was the most senior figure killed by Israel and the US since the war's first day, when they killed the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with members of his family and other senior officials.
Mr Khatib's ministry had sought to counter Israel's formidable intelligence gathering, announcing arrests of alleged spies and confiscating Starlink internet terminals allegedly smuggled into Iran by the US.
In a video posted on social media on Tuesday, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pulled a small card out of his suit jacket pocket and said: “Today I erased two names on the punch card, and you see how many more to go on this batch.”
After the killing of Mr Larijani, Mr Araghchi said his country's political system is “solid” and does not rely on one person. “Of course, individuals are influential, and each person plays their role – some better, some worse, some less – but what matters is that the political system in Iran is a very solid structure,” he said.
Air raids
In Israel, air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and surrounding cities overnight. A man and a woman were killed in Ramat Gan after sustaining severe shrapnel injuries, the national ambulance service said, bringing the death toll in Israel from the war to at least 14.
Iran has repeatedly attacked densely populated Tel Aviv, which hosts vital military and security installations. It was not immediately clear what Iran had attacked in the latest strike.
Foreign Minister Gideon Saar earlier said that Israel had “in effect, already won the war”, but gave no indication of when the conflict might end, saying only that the campaign would continue until its objectives were achieved.
The death toll in Iran since the war began has surpassed 1,440, with a further 18,700 injured, according to the World Health Organisation. Since the start of the war on February 28, an estimated 100,000 people have left Tehran and as many as a million households across Iran have been relocated.
Gulf countries have been intercepting daily attacks since the US-Israeli bombardment of Iran began on February 28. Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian publicly apologised to neighbouring countries, but Iranian attacks have continued.
The Gulf states have condemned Iran's actions, which have resulted in civilian casualties and damage to civilian buildings such as hotels, airports and homes.
