By Toba Owojaiye
Faced with escalating military pressure from Israel and heightened tensions with the United States, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has reportedly transferred significant military authority to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) following a wave of targeted assassinations among Iran’s top military brass.
A recent Israeli campaign, including airstrikes and covert operations, has systematically targeted and eliminated senior IRGC commanders:
Major General Gholam Ali Rashid, head of the Khatam-al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, was killed on June 13 .
Just days later, on June 17, his successor Brigadier General Ali Shadmani was also assassinated .
These operations were widely described as a “decapitation campaign,” aiming to cripple Iran’s military command structure .
Reports from Iran Insight and Mint show Khamenei relocating to an underground bunker in northeast Tehran, with authority transferred to the Supreme Council of the IRGC to ensure continuity in military decision-making .
According to Iran International, the move comes after Khamenei was out of the public eye for five days, a precaution amid the turmoil .
This shift reveals Iran’s urgent need to maintain military oversight while its central leadership is physically and politically under duress.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, Senior Director of FDD’s Iran Program, told Sky News Australia:
“After the decapitation … of lots of Iran’s military elite, they’re going to want to try and find a way to rebalance… It’s just a sign of the times, that there’s different elements of the regime trying to do different things.”
He suggests internal jockeying is intensifying as the regime adapts to sudden power vacuums .
Israel’s campaign aims to dismantle Iran’s nuclear and military capabilities, including missile infrastructure and elite personnel, potentially paving a path toward regime-change scenarios .
Global observers, including G7 leaders, caution that removing Iran’s leadership poses huge risks, economic fallout, civil unrest, and regional fragmentation, without a clear, viable alternative government in place .
In a televised address on June 18, Khamenei warned that any U.S. intervention would have “irreparable consequences” .
U.S. President Trump, meanwhile, repeated that Tehran “should immediately evacuate,” and claimed that U.S. intelligence knows Khamenei’s bunker location—but, for now, the U.S. has no plans to target him .
Military Continuity With the IRGC Supreme Council taking charge, Iran maintains operational capabilities, though strategic coherence may be at risk due to leadership fragmentation.
Leadership Vacuum The deaths of top commanders weaken Khamenei’s trusted hierarchy, raising questions about his long-term grip on power .
Regional Risk Experts warn that further strikes could provoke wider conflict, destabilizing oil markets and prompting retaliatory asymmetrical warfare .
No Clear Successor Speculation grows around successors like Mojtaba Khamenei, but Iran remains institutionally resilient and structured against single-person reliance .
Iran is at a pivotal moment. The targeted assassinations have significantly disrupted its military command, prompting Khamenei to decentralize control by delegating to the IRGC. The regime is now managing asymmetric pressure both internally (from fractured leadership and externally) from states like Israel and the U.S. Although Iran’s structures remain robust, the stakes are higher than ever in this volatile phase of the Iran‑Israel conflict.