Tehran (TDI): Iran has not issued any official confirmation or comment yet following reports that Israel killed Alireza Tangsiri, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, in a precision airstrike on Wednesday.
Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, announced the strike and yet-unconfirmed killing of the commander on Thursday, saying the strike landed in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas.
He said Tangsiri was directly responsible for mining and blocking the Strait of Hormuz, adding that the strike also eliminated several other senior naval command officers; sending a clear message to the IRGC that Israel would continue to target its leadership.
Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command, also confirmed Tangsiri’s death on Thursday; contending that the elimination makes the region safer. Cooper urged every Iranian serving in the IRGC Navy to abandon their posts and return home to avoid further risk of unnecessary injury or death.
Statement from Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander: pic.twitter.com/oVqhVjgIDL
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 26, 2026
Netanyahu, in a statement, described Tangsiri as someone with “a great deal of blood on his hands” and as someone “who led the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.”
However, Iran has yet to confirm the strike and if it led to the killing of the naval commander and others. Until any confirmation from Iran, the killing of Alireza Tangsiri remains only a partial claim.
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Who Is Alireza Tangsiri?
Alireza Tangsiri has served as commander of the IRGC Navy since 2018, after being the deputy commander since 2010. A veteran of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War, he is known for his hardliner public statements.
Since the joint US-Israel military campaign, known as Operation Epic Fury, began on 28 February, Iran has restricted and strictly guarded shipping through the Strait of Hormuz which, under normal circumstance, carries 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas.
Iran’s response in the Strait; targeting vessels and restricting passage, have been linked to Tangsiri’s oversight of naval operations and the use of fast boats, cruise missiles, and armed drones under his command.
Muhammad Usman Hashmi
Muhammad Usman Hashmi is a researcher in International Relations, focusing on climate diplomacy, global governance, and political economy in the Global South. He has contributed to policy dialogues with the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia and serves as a Senior Research Fellow at the International Council on Human Rights, Peace and Politics. He is also associated with Rethinking Economics Islamabad, contributing to research on development and sustainability. He can be reached at musmanhashmi99@gmail.com
