Tipsheet

Israel Just Took Out Iran’s New Military Chief—After Only Four Days on the Job

Jeff Charles
Jeff Charles  |  June 17, 2025 11:45 AM

Israeli military forces have killed Iran’s new wartime chief of staff in an airstrike just after they killed his predecessor.

The airstrike killed Major General Ali Shademani, who served as chief of staff for only four days after replacing General Hossein Salami during its initial strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

From Politico:

His death is the latest in Israel’s Operation Rising Lion, which has targeted much of Iran’s top military leadership since launching Friday. Israel’s opening strikes killed Gen. Hossein Salami, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, Iran’s armed forces chief of staff.

While European calls for de-escalation of the conflict between Israel and Iran are largely falling flat, German MP Johann Wadephul, speaking from Oman on Monday, said Berlin is using its ties with both Israel and regional powers to push for diplomacy.

“My hope and my efforts are that it will not be a prolonged war, but that we take the opportunity to enter into a negotiation phase,” he said. But he added that Iran must show “clear willingness to refrain from nuclear armament” if talks are to move forward.

Israel recently bombed an Iranian state TV studio while it was broadcasting. The move was seen as an effort to disrupt the regime’s ability to propagandize to the public. Video footage circulating on social media shows the anchor delivering a report before an explosion.

Iran has reportedly been signaling that it is willing to come back to the negotiating table to de-escalate hostilities with Israel. Its officials communicated with Arab nations, informing them that they are willing to work out another nuclear deal as long as the United States does not join Israel’s offensive.

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An Arab official told The Wall Street Journal that Iran is “sure the U.S. is supporting Israel logistically,” but “they want guarantees the U.S. won’t join the attacks.”

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently upped the ante when he declared on Monday that Israel is willing to assassinate Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. “Imagine what will happen if they had nuclear weapons, and the ICBMs—the intercontinental ballistic missiles—to deliver them to every place on earth. We’re preventing the most horrific war imaginable,” he told ABC News’ Jonathan Karl.