ISIS: Our Forces Killed the Commander of the Revolutionary Guards

International news agencies reported on Monday that the Islamic State group (formerly known as ISIS) has claimed responsibility for the killing of a commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Iraq. AFP reported on Monday, December 29, that some social media networks and sources close to ISIS have released images announcing that Hamid Taghavi, a commander of the IRGC and one of its military advisors in Iraq, was killed with the help of an ISIS sniper. One of the ISIS-affiliated websites published a photo of three military personnel, with a red circle drawn around one of their heads, stating: "Photo of the infidel Hamid Taghavi, killed by the men of ISIS in the Samarra area." Another photo on this website shows a corpse identified as Hamid Taghavi. On Sunday, the public relations office of the IRGC announced that one of its commanders was killed while on a mission abroad in Iraq, specifically in the city of Samarra. The IRGC referred to Hamid Taghavi as one of its military advisors. In the past two years, similar reports have emerged regarding the deaths of IRGC commanders in Syria and Iraq. Both Syria and Iraq have been facing internal conflicts and political turmoil for months, with many militant and extremist groups engaged in armed conflict in various regions of these countries. The IRGC's statement noted that Mr. Taghavi had been a commander at the Ramadan Headquarters during the eight-year Iran-Iraq War. The Ramadan Headquarters is referred to as the command center for conducting irregular warfare by the IRGC. Now, international news agencies have reported that Hamid Taghavi was one of the IRGC officials in Samarra who was targeted and killed by an ISIS-affiliated sniper hiding behind a power transformer on Saturday evening. It appears that several companions of this IRGC member were also injured in the incident. The city of Samarra, located 110 kilometers north of Baghdad, is predominantly Sunni and is home to some sacred sites of Shia Islam. The Islamic State group has intensified its attacks to seize this city in recent weeks. In recent months, various reports have emerged regarding the presence of Iranian military forces and Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Quds Force, in Iraq. Some Iranian officials have denied these reports, while some IRGC commanders have confirmed them.