Khamenei's First Public Reaction to the Killing of Reza Mousavi: 'Blessed is His Soul'

Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, prayed over the body of Reza Mousavi in Tehran on Thursday and, in his first public reaction to the killing of this senior member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), told his family, 'Blessed is his soul.' He then claimed that Mousavi, after 'a lifetime of effort and struggle,' ultimately received the 'reward of martyrdom from the Lord.' Reza Mousavi, known as 'Seyyed Reza,' was a commander of the IRGC in Syria, who was killed on Tuesday, December 25, when a missile struck his home in the Zainabiyah neighborhood of Damascus. The Islamic Republic claims that the attack was carried out by Israel, but Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement in Mousavi's death. The killing of Reza Mousavi has sparked widespread reactions, and among them, the IRGC commander and spokesperson have presented contradictory claims. Hossein Salami, the commander of the IRGC, on Thursday rejected the previous day's statements by the IRGC spokesperson, who had described Hamas's terrorist attack on Israel as retaliation for the killing of Qassem Soleimani, stating, 'The Al-Aqsa Storm is independent of our movement for avenging the blood of Haj Qassem; the revenge for Haj Qassem will take place in its own specific context, where we will deal with the instigators and perpetrators of the martyrdom of this great man and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and their companions.' Ramadan Sharif, the IRGC spokesperson, on Wednesday, December 26, in response to the killing of Reza Mousavi, threatened Israel, stating that 'the Al-Aqsa Storm is one of the retaliations for the assassination' of Qassem Soleimani 'by the U.S. and Israel.' However, hours after the spokesperson described Hamas's terrorist attack on October 7 against Israel as 'one of the retaliations' for the killing of Qassem Soleimani, Hamas denied this claim. According to the Fars news agency, affiliated with the IRGC, Ramadan Sharif warned, 'The Israelis should know that the IRGC knows the reason for this assassination well and will show an appropriate reaction to it. Certainly, these retaliations will continue at different times and places.' These statements by Ramadan Sharif differ from previous remarks by Islamic Republic officials who had denied involvement in the October 7 attack by the Hamas militia against Israel. In his further comments, Ramadan Sharif introduced Reza Mousavi as a 'skilled and experienced advisor of the IRGC' who had been responsible for 'empowering and supporting' the Islamic Republic's proxy forces in the region for 'over 25 years.' Ramadan Sharif stated that the 'response' to the killing of Reza Mousavi would be 'a combination of direct action' by the Islamic Republic and its proxy forces in the region under the title of 'the Resistance Front.' Islamic Republic officials refer to militia groups in the Middle East that they arm and fund as 'the Resistance Front.' Meanwhile, the Palestinian group Hamas rejected the IRGC spokesperson's statements that the October 15 operation against Israel was revenge for the killing of Qassem Soleimani. This Palestinian militia group, supported by the Islamic Republic, stated in a Wednesday declaration that it considers 'all actions' of Palestinian groups, including 'the Al-Aqsa Storm operation,' as responses to Israeli actions at 'Al-Aqsa Mosque.' In previous days, Islamic Republic officials had attributed the killing of Reza Mousavi, a veteran member of the IRGC and 'responsible for sending weapons to pro-Islamic Republic militants in Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon,' to Israel and threatened the country with retaliatory action. On Tuesday, Kamal Panahsi, the Persian-speaking spokesperson for the Israeli army, in an interview with Voice of America, while refraining from confirming or denying his country's involvement in the killing of Reza Mousavi in Syria, stated that any attack on Israel's borders would face a decisive response from the Israeli army. Three days after the killing of Reza Mousavi, one of the highest-ranking commanders of the IRGC Quds Force in Syria, in an airstrike near Damascus, contradictory narratives from Islamic Republic officials about him and the nature of his activities continue. Iranian websites reported, citing Hossein Akbari, the Iranian ambassador to Syria, that Mousavi's house was targeted by 'three missiles' and his body was 'thrown into the yard.' The IRGC also stated in a declaration that Mousavi was a 'comrade' of Qassem Soleimani and 'responsible for supporting the Resistance Front' in Syria. Islamic Republic officials refer to militia groups in the Middle East that they arm and fund as 'the Resistance Front.' The IRGC's statement comes as Hossein Akbari described Reza Mousavi as a 'diplomat and second advisor at the embassy' in Iran and stated that he had 'a diplomatic passport and diplomatic residency' in Syria. Daniel Hagari, the spokesperson for the Israeli army, refrained from officially stating that Israel targeted Mousavi. Hagari told a Reuters reporter who asked him to respond to the killing of Mousavi and reports of Israel's involvement in this attack that he does not comment on 'foreign reports.' However, he stated that the duty of the Israeli army is to protect Israel's security interests. Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, who is also a military man with a record of membership in the IRGC, stated that Mousavi 'untangled every job in the field.' 'Field' is a term that has been used in recent years in the Islamic Republic for the IRGC's military activities abroad. The Islamic Republic financially and militarily supports militia groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad that engage with Israel. On the other hand, Agence France-Presse, citing the 'Syrian Observatory for Human Rights,' which receives its news from Syrian government opponents based in London, reported that in addition to Mousavi, 'two foreign fighters and one Syrian fighter were also killed in the Israeli attack.' Mousavi is the highest-ranking IRGC official killed outside Iran in the past four years. Ibrahim Raisi, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, stated on Tuesday that the Islamic Republic will take revenge for the killing of Mousavi. Islamic Republic officials had made similar threats after the killing of Qassem Soleimani, the former commander of the IRGC Quds Force, in a U.S. drone strike near Baghdad airport, and after a missile attack on a base hosting U.S. forces (Ain al-Asad), they continue to say that this 'hard revenge' has not yet been taken. In the missile attack by the IRGC on Ain al-Asad base in Iraq, no American forces were killed. However, shortly after that, a Ukrainian passenger plane was shot down by two missiles from the IRGC just minutes after taking off from Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran, killing all its passengers. The Islamic Republic's use of the title 'diplomat' for intelligence and military agents has a history. For example, a previous 'diplomat' of the Islamic Republic named Assadollah Assadi was arrested for attempting to bomb a gathering of the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization in Paris and was found guilty in a court in Belgium. He was arrested in Germany and after being transferred to Belgium in 2021, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Assadollah Assadi was the 'third secretary of the Iranian embassy' in Vienna. The Islamic Republic, emphasizing his diplomatic immunity, rejected the accusations and evidence against him. In June of this year, Iranian officials managed to exchange Assadi with a Belgian aid worker detained in Iran. Western experts say the Islamic Republic effectively takes foreign and dual nationals hostage to exert pressure on other countries.