Ali Larijani killed in US-Israeli strike, Iran confirms; key architect of regime’s security policy dies at 67

Veteran Iranian politician Ali Larijani, one of the most powerful figures in the Islamic Republic and a longtime confidant of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in a U.S.-Israeli airstrike, Iranian media confirmed on Tuesday.

Larijani, 67, died when a strike hit the eastern outskirts of a Tehran suburb while he was visiting his daughter, according to Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency. Earlier in the day, Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz had said Larijani had been killed in an Israeli attack.

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A central figure in shaping Iran’s security doctrine and nuclear posture, Larijani’s death removes one of the last influential political operators from the inner circle that defined the era of Khamenei, who himself was killed in an airstrike last month.

Power broker of Khamenei’s Iran

Born into a prominent clerical family, Larijani rose to become a pillar of the Islamic Republic following the 1979 Islamic Revolution. His brothers also held senior posts, reinforcing the family’s deep influence within the system.

Seen as pragmatic yet firmly loyal to Iran’s theocratic order, Larijani combined ideological commitment with tactical flexibility. He often advocated caution in foreign policy and occasionally favoured diplomacy over confrontation, even as he remained committed to preserving the system built by Khamenei.

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His career spanned key institutions: he served as a commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps during the Iran-Iraq War, later headed state broadcaster IRIB, led the Supreme National Security Council, and spent 12 years as speaker of parliament.

That breadth of roles made him one of the regime’s ultimate insiders — a figure entrusted with responsibilities ranging from nuclear negotiations and regional strategy to managing internal dissent.

Architect of nuclear policy

As Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator from 2005 to 2007, Larijani defended Tehran’s right to enrich uranium amid mounting international pressure after undeclared facilities were revealed in 2003.

He struck a defiant tone in talks with the West, memorably saying European incentives to halt enrichment were like "exchanging a pearl for a candy bar."

Despite being labelled a pragmatist, he remained unwavering on Iran’s technological ambitions.

"Because once you have discovered a technology, they can't take the discovery away," he told PBS's Frontline programme in September 2025. "It's as if you are the inventor of some machine, and the machine is stolen from ⁠you. You can still make it again."

Larijani played a key role in managing ties with major powers, including Russia — where he met President Vladimir Putin — and China, helping advance a 25-year cooperation agreement in 2021.

As parliament speaker from 2008 to 2020, he also helped steer domestic approval of the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, later abandoned by the United States.

War, unrest and sanctions

In his final year, Larijani returned as head of the Supreme National Security Council following a 12-day air war with Israel, working to avert a broader conflict even as tensions escalated.

"In my view, this issue is resolvable," Larijani told Oman state television earlier this year, referring to talks with the United States. "If the Americans' concern is that Iran should not move toward acquiring a nuclear weapon, that can be addressed."

But his record was also marked by controversy.

Washington imposed sanctions on him last month over his alleged role in crushing mass protests in January, one of the deadliest crackdowns since the revolution. Rights groups say thousands were killed.

According to a U.S. Treasury statement, "Larijani was one of the first Iranian leaders to call for violence in response to the legitimate demands of the Iranian people," adding he had acted at Khamenei’s behest.

A diminishing political class

Even before his death, Larijani’s influence had begun to wane amid a shifting power balance in Tehran following Khamenei’s death, with the Revolutionary Guards assuming a more dominant role at the expense of traditional political figures.

Still, he remained among the most experienced operators in Iran’s system — a communicator who could articulate the supreme leader’s vision to both domestic and international audiences, and a strategist who helped shape the country’s approach to nuclear capability without triggering full-scale war.

The U.S.-Israeli strikes that ultimately killed him also marked the collapse of that balancing act — a nuclear strategy he had long championed, now overtaken by open conflict.