Iran’s Weapons Kingpin, ‘Architect’ of Hamas’ October 7 Massacre Eliminated in Latest IDF Strikes

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Saturday that they had killed the commander of the Quds Force’s Weapons Transfer Unit within Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in a precise strike in western Iran. Behnam Shahriyari was responsible for weapons transfers from the Iranian regime to its proxies across the Middle East, directly aiding efforts to destroy Israel, it said.

Besides Shahriyari, Saeed Izadi, a senior IRGC commander and head of the Quds Force’s Palestine Corps, was also killed by the IDF. He was described as “one of the architects” of Hamas’ October 7, 2023, massacre.

Shahriyari “was eliminated more than 1,000 km from Israel while traveling in western Iran”, the IDF said, hailing the operation as a major success against Iranian-backed terrorist networks. “Shahriyari also commanded the transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars annually to various terrorist organizations. Furthermore, he led the extensive effort to finance and arm these terrorist organizations—an effort that has resulted in the deaths and injuries of many Israeli civilians and soldiers,” the statement added.

Shahriyari was also chief of IRGC’s clandestine Unit 190, long suspected of smuggling advanced weapons to Hezbollah, Hamas, and Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

Israel has reportedly been targeting him since 2009.

As per IDF, Shahriyari worked “directly with the Hezbollah and Hamas terror organizations, as well as with the Houthi regime and other groups,” and that he had overseen the distribution of “numerous missiles and rockets that were fired at Israeli territory during the war.”

It said Shahriyari’s death is a ‘severe blow” to the capability of hostile forces to regroup and rearm following sustained Israeli assaults.

Meanwhile, Saeed Izadi, a senior IRGC commander, was killed in a separate airstrike in the Iranian city of Qom. “Izadi was eliminated in a safe house in the heart of Iran, following a prolonged intelligence effort,” the IDF said. He was described as a key liaison between Tehran and Hamas.

According to the IDF, Izadi funneled financial support to the group, and coordinated Iranian military strategy to destabilise Israel through multiple fronts.

“Izadi was one of the founders and leading figures behind the Iranian regime’s plan to destroy Israel,” the IDF said.