Israel says striking Basij militia in Tehran after leader killed

Israel’s military said it was striking Iran’s Basij paramilitary force in its positions around Tehran on Tuesday, after announcing it had killed the volunteer militia’s top commander.

“The air force has attacked, in recent hours, soldiers and positions of the Basij unit that were deployed throughout Tehran,” Israel’s air force posted online along with a video of what it said was a strike.

Iran-Israel war updates on March 17, 2026

Earlier Tuesday (March 17, 2026), Israel had announced that it had killed Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani in an air strike, at the same time as it said it had assassinated Tehran’s national security chief Ali Larijani.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards later confirmed Soleimani’s death, but the authorities in Tehran have not yet confirmed that Larijani was killed.

In another statement, Israel’s military said it identified a “renewed deployment of Basij forces,” describing these fighters as “operating from posts embedded within public areas in the heart of Tehran”.

The military launched new strikes targeting “more than 10 different posts across Tehran”.

“The recent strikes, alongside the elimination of the unit’s commander, Gholamreza Soleimani, inflict significant and ongoing damage to the capabilities of the Basij unit,” the statement added.

The strikes against the Basij are part of Israeli efforts to loosen the control of the authorities and open the way for a popular uprising against the clerical establishment.

In recent days the Israeli military has said it was striking checkpoints set up by the force around Tehran.

The Basij are accused of playing a key role in the bloody crackdown on recent mass protests in Iran in which rights groups say thousands of people were killed.