Israel Ramps Up Strikes on Iran’s Leadership, Repression Apparatus

Israel has intensified a sweeping campaign targeting Iran’s leadership and internal security machinery, in what officials say is a bid to destabilize the regime and lay the groundwork for its potential collapse.

On Tuesday night, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) killed Iranian Intelligence Minister Ismail Khatib in Tehran during a precision airstrike carried out with a narrow window of real-time intelligence.

According to Israeli officials, the strike followed rapidly obtained intelligence pinpointing Khatib’s hideout, allowing the Air Force to divert jets mid-mission and eliminate the target within minutes.

Emerging reports indicate that Iranian civilians are increasingly supplying Israel with real-time intelligence — including the locations of checkpoints and security forces — providing critical insight that enables faster, more precise Israeli strikes.

Shortly after the attack, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian confirmed Khatib’s death, condemning it as a “cowardly assassination” and warning that those responsible would be held accountable.

Appointed in 2021, Khatib led Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence, a central pillar of the regime’s repression apparatus, overseeing espionage, covert operations, and intelligence activities targeting both domestic dissent and foreign adversaries, including Israeli and US targets.

He also played a central role during the regime’s brutal crackdown on internal dissent, including the latest nationwide anti-government protests, which security forces violently crushed, with thousands of demonstrators tortured and killed.

Khatib’s assassination is the latest in a wave of targeted killings of senior Iranian officials in recent days, further weakening the regime’s leadership and operational networks.

“The intensity of the attacks in Iran is increasing. We are in the midst of a decisive victory,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement after announcing Khatib’s death.

“Israel’s policy is clear and unequivocal: No one in Iran has immunity and everyone is in the crosshairs,” he continued.

Katz also said Israeli forces now have the “green light” to carry out targeted assassinations, signaling a new phase in their operations.

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have authorized the IDF to thwart any senior Iranian official who is surrounded, intelligence and operational, without the need for additional authorization. We will continue to thwart and hunt them all,” the Israeli official said.

“Significant surprises are expected in all arenas that will escalate the war we are waging against Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon,” he continued, referring to Iran’s chief terrorist proxy.

Earlier this week, the Air Force also killed Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s National Security Council, in what was the most significant assassination since the killing of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the start of the campaign. Larijani was widely believed to be running the country following Khamenei’s death.

Gholam Reza Soleimani, commander of the Basij forces, was also killed during the strike. He led the paramilitary units used by the regime to violently suppress protests and crush political opposition across the country.

“We are undermining this regime in the hope of giving the Iranian people a chance to remove it,” Netanyahu said in a statement after announcing the operation’s successful outcome. 

“It won’t happen all at once; it won’t happen easily. But if we persist in this — we will give them a chance to take their fate into their own hands,” the Israeli leader continued.

With the conflict now stretching over more than two weeks, Israel is now taking a strategic turn, with the Air Force on Wednesday hitting a gas processing facility in the country’s southern region.

Located in the Persian Gulf, the South Pars gas field targeted in the attack is the world’s largest natural gas reservoir, shared between Iran and Qatar, and supplies roughly 70 percent of the country’s total natural gas output.

According to Michael Doran, an American analyst specializing in Middle Eastern politics, this latest operation reflects a widening of the campaign beyond military objectives to pressure other key parts of the regime.

“Strategically, this marks a shift toward targeting economic lifelines, not just military assets, with the goal of weakening regime stability,” Doran wrote in a post on X.

Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Katz promised surprises today. They did not lie.

U.S.–Israeli strikes hit onshore processing facilities in the Asaluyeh zone—the core hub of the South Pars gas field, which produces ~70% of Iran’s natural gas. Iranian state media… pic.twitter.com/kKJ8qjlifu

— Mike (@Doranimated) March 18, 2026

Following the strike, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned they could retaliate by targeting energy infrastructure across the Gulf, including facilities in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, raising the threat of wider disruptions to the global energy market.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu delivered another speech addressing the Iranian people ahead of Nowruz, the Persian New Year marking the start of spring, urging them to celebrate and seize the moment to challenge the regime.

“Israeli aircraft are striking terrorist operatives in the field — on the roads and in the squares. Go out and celebrate, and have a happy Nowruz holiday — we are watching from above,” the Israeli leader said in a video statement.

“Israeli aircraft are striking terrorist operatives in the field—on the roads and in the squares. Go out and celebrate the Nowruz —we are watching from above” – Joint statement by Israeli PM, Israel’s Minister of Defense, Chief of Staff, the head of the Mossad pic.twitter.com/yP0HUTCF1Q

— Amichai Stein (@AmichaiStein1) March 17, 2026

According to a new Washington Post report, Israel’s campaign is increasingly focused on dismantling Iran’s internal repression systems, aiming to create a leadership vacuum and logistical breakdown that could hinder the regime’s ability to respond if mass protests erupt again.

Israeli forces have carried out targeted strikes on senior Basij and IRGC officers, destroyed infrastructure used to suppress protests, and launched cyber operations to disrupt internal security communications and coordination, crippling the regime’s ability to redeploy its forces effectively.

So far, Israel says it has launched thousands of strikes on a wide range of targets linked to the IRGC, Basij, and other internal security forces, with thousands of personnel reportedly killed or wounded.

Late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning alone, around 300 Basij commanders and field officials were killed in a wave of strikes on key command and operational centers, according to Iran International.

So far, Israel says it has dropped some 10,000 munitions on targets linked to the IRGC, Basij, and other internal security forces, delivering a devastating blow to the regime’s security apparatus.

Even with Israel’s military strikes inflicting heavy damage, Iranian security forces remain in control of the streets and continue threatening protesters with gunfire, though Israeli officials believe mounting economic strain, sustained military pressure, and rising public anger are pushing the regime closer to potential collapse, even if it’s not imminent.

“The Iranians are starting to understand in recent days what happened to them,” the IDF’s Intelligence Directorate chief, Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, said in a recent closed-door security discussion, according to Israel’s Channel 12. “They are now discovering how bare the command line is and what damage has been done to them. What they shoot is what they manage to shoot. They simply can’t do any more than that.”

Binder reportedly noted that the while the Iranian people are currently “afraid to come out because of the presence of our planes and the Americans,” Israel is progressively destroying Iran’s ability to launch missiles and mount offensive operations.

“They are in distress,” he said.