Iran's Quds Force leader missing after Israeli strike in Beirut

The Iranian brigadier-general was present in Dahiyeh at the time and could have been wounded in the Israeli strike.

Esmail Qaani, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps’ (IRGC) Quds Force, has been reportedly missing after Israeli airstrikes in Beirut on Friday. While the Iranian media has been silent on his whereabouts, some Turkish and Israeli news outlets have claimed that Qaani could be dead.

According to reports, the Israeli airstrikes in Beirut's southern suburb Dahiyeh were targeted at Hashem Safieddine, the successor to slain Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. Safieddine has also been reportedly unreachable after the strikes.

According to the Israeli N12 news, the Iranian brigadier-general was present in Dahiyeh at the time and could have been wounded in the Israeli strike. Another Israeli news outlet Channel 12 claimed that Lebanese authorities confirmed Qaani’s death, though the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) have not claimed the killing of the Iranian commander.

Some reports also speculated that Qaani could have been put under increased surveillance due to fear of Israeli operations after Iran's missile strikes on October 1. Some Saudi news channels even suggested that Qaani might have been executed by Iran on suspicion of collaborating with the Mossad, Israel's spy agency.