Iran's intelligence minister Esmail Khatib has been killed, the country's president has confirmed. Masoud Pezeshkian stated that the 'cowardly assassination' left Iran 'in deep mourning,' following Israel’s announcement that it had conducted the air strike. This strike is part of a broader military campaign against Iranian leadership, which has already seen multiple high-ranking officials targeted, including the recent deaths of Iran's top security official, Ali Larijani, and Gholamreza Soleimani, head of the paramilitary Basij force. The assassination of Khatib comes just weeks after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, raising the stakes in the conflict. Israel's defense minister revealed that Khatib had been 'eliminated' in a targeted operation intended to neutralize threats posed by Iranian officials. Khatib, who was charged by the US Treasury in past years for engaging in harmful activities against the US, had played a significant role in Iran's intelligence. The repercussions of Khatib's assassination are expected to ripple throughout the country, as many Iranians expressed mixed feelings regarding the leadership in light of recent protests. As tensions escalate, the Iranian government reports significant casualties amidst ongoing Israeli and US strikes.