Israeli Reports Confirm Overnight Death of Iran’s Intelligence Minister Khatib

On March 18, Defence Minister Israel Katz announced that Esmail Khatib, Iran’s intelligence minister, had been eliminated. Katz said the action occurred overnight in a strike.

Official statements

Katz said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had authorized the military to act. They gave permission to target other senior Iranian officials without further approval.

Confirmation status

Tehran has not confirmed Khatib’s reported death. Israeli reports that confirm an overnight death remain unverified by Iranian authorities.

Reporting and credits

This account cites reporting by Steven Scheer, writing by Tala Ramadan, and editing by Andrew Heavens. Filmogaz.com carries the story and notes its editorial standards.

No independent confirmation has emerged from other sources. Officials and analysts will likely watch for further statements from Tehran.