IRGC's Response to Rouhani's Remarks: Missile Operations Were Ordered by the Leader

On Wednesday, June 21, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced that its missile operation against the Islamic State (ISIS) was conducted within the military hierarchy and under the command of the Supreme Leader. A day earlier, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani stated that the Supreme National Security Council had made the decision regarding the operation. According to Sepah News, the IRGC's public relations department detailed the missile operation, known as "Laylat al-Qadr," against ISIS in Deir ez-Zor, Syria, on June 18, stating that it was carried out "within the military hierarchy and in coordination with the General Staff of the Armed Forces and under the command of the Supreme Leader." This operation followed the June 7 attacks on the Iranian Parliament and the tomb of Ayatollah Khomeini in Tehran, for which ISIS claimed responsibility, resulting in 17 fatalities and 50 injuries. The IRGC's announcement came shortly after Rouhani's remarks, where he emphasized that the actions taken by the IRGC to prepare and launch missiles targeting ISIS leaders in Deir ez-Zor were not the decision of an individual or a military branch, but rather decisions made by the Supreme National Security Council. He added that the council had granted the armed forces powers to respond to terrorists that exceeded the recent actions. According to ISNA news agency, Mahmoud Alavi, the Minister of Intelligence, also stated that the President, in his capacity as the head of the Supreme National Security Council, ordered a decisive assault on ISIS positions, which was approved by senior military officials. The IRGC's public relations further noted that all stages of identifying and gathering information about the locations and positions of Takfiri terrorists in Deir ez-Zor were conducted solely by the field agents of the Quds Force in a precise and reliable process, and the information was provided to the IRGC Aerospace Force. Earlier, the Minister of Intelligence had told ISNA that the locations of ISIS leaders were provided to the IRGC's missile unit. The IRGC's announcement regarding the June 18 missile attacks stated that this "successful operation" involved the firing of six medium-range ground-to-ground missiles, resulting in the deaths of 170 ISIS members. This figure was reported despite the Quds Force previously stating that 85 were killed in the missile attacks. Since June 18, Iranian military and political officials have described the missile strikes on Deir ez-Zor as "successful." However, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported, citing Israeli military officials, that only two of the seven Iranian missiles hit their intended targets. General Gadi Eisenkot, Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army, also stated on Tuesday that "most of the missiles fired by Iran did not hit their intended targets."