Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz has said its military has been authorized to kill Iranian leaders in its sight.
This comes as he reported Israeli military has killed Iran intelligence chief Esmail Khatib in Strikes.
The operation was said to have been carried out under expanded military authorisation targeting senior Iranian officials
He stated that Israeli forces no longer require additional approvals once actionable intelligence is confirmed.
“We will continue to thwart and hunt them all down,” Katz said, underscoring Israel’s increasingly aggressive posture toward Iranian leadership figures.
However, Iranian authorities have not confirmed the reported death of Khatib, leaving uncertainty around the claim.
The development comes amid heightened hostilities in the region, with both nations engaged in a shadow conflict that has increasingly shifted into direct confrontation. Israeli leadership, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has signalled a willingness to expand operations against high-ranking Iranian officials.
If confirmed, the killing of Khatib would represent one of the most significant blows to Iran’s intelligence apparatus in recent years and could trigger retaliatory actions from Tehran.
