Turbulent Iran: What happened to Quds Force Commander Ismail Ka’ani?

Iran has been in turmoil for the past day following the reports of the possibility that Quds Force Commander Ismail Ka’ani was injured in the IDF bombing in Beirut. Following the publication yesterday (Saturday) by Ehud Yaari on N12, along with several other publications in Arab media, many in Iran began to wonder about the condition of Ka’ani, one of the top figures in Iran and the Revolutionary Guards, the very fact that the authorities in Tehran have not yet issued an official statement about his condition increases the rumors and suspicions that he may indeed have been hurt.Three official sources in Iran confirmed to the New York Times that Ka’ani did arrive in Beirut last week. Yesterday, Iranian television denied the report that Ka’ani was injured in Beirut, and it was even claimed that he is in Iran and is in good condition. But beyond that, no reports were published, not even in media affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards.

The Revolutionary Guards have not yet published any reference to Ka’ani’s situation and fate, although in many cases they are quick to deny reports of harm to members of the organization. For example, after the pager attack in Lebanon, it was reported on the Saudi Al-Hadath channel that dozens of members of the Revolutionary Guards were killed by similar explosions in Syria – and the news was denied in less than an hour.

Against the background of the rumors and speculations about the death or injury of Ka’ani, in Iran it is reported this morning that he is expected to participate in a special television program this evening that will be dedicated to the anniversary of the war in Gaza. Yesterday, the Iranian news website Tabnak criticized the conduct of the authorities in the matter: “Public opinion is waiting for news that our general is alive and in good health.” Another news website hastened to publish a long biography about Ka’ani’s life and work.

According to the report in the New York Times, Ka’ani arrived in Lebanon last week to meet with senior Hezbollah officials and help them deal with the heavy blows the IDF inflicted on the organization. He was last seen on Sunday, in a visit documented and published in the media in Iran, at the official Hezbollah office in Tehran , to express condolences for the death of Nasrallah. The Quds Force commander has not been seen in public since Sunday, nor in the highly publicized sermon of Iranian leader Ali Khamenei on Friday, in which he justified the missile attack on Israel.

Yesterday it was announced on N12 that in Lebanon they are checking if Ka’ani was hit in one of the bombings in Beirut. It is believed that he was not injured in the bombing aimed at Nasrallah’s successor Sheikh Hashem Safi al-Din and the head of Hezbollah’s intelligence Hossein Zima.

67-year-old Amseil Qa’ani is the commander of the Quds Force in the Revolutionary Guards, and replaced Qasem Soleimani, who was killed by the US army in Baghdad on January 3, 2020. In the first days after he took office, criticism was heard in Israel and the West about his performance, and it was initially claimed that there was no He is able to step into Soleimani’s big shoes. Despite this, it is now believed that he is largely responsible for increasing the coordination between the terrorist organizations and the “resistance” arms of Iran throughout the Middle East, and succeeded in promoting cooperation between the various arenas during the war against Israel in the last year.