Iran War Days 17–18: Israel kills Larijani; allies reject Hormuz mission; top US official resigns

GULF COUNTRIES - In Brief 17 Mar 2026 by Justin Alexander
HighlightsUpdate for March 16-17. Israel killed Ali Larijani, one of Iran’s de facto leaders. EU foreign ministers and others rejected Trump’s demand for a naval coalition to secure Hormuz. The most senior US counterterrorism official resigned, calling the war unjustified. Iran struck a gas field in the UAE and other Gulf targets. US/Israel and Iran Israel killed Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and one of the main figures running the country since Khamenei’s death, in an overnight strike on a Tehran safe house. (Ax, BB). Larijani was one of the regime veterans, widely viewed as a pragmatist. British veteran journalist John Simpson said, “he always seemed clever and reasonable – the kind of person you might want to negotiate a peace deal with”. Iranian-American analyst Ali Alfoneh, at the Arab Gulf States Institute, echoed a similar view: “Israel is assassinating anyone who can negotiate with the US”. Christiana Amanpour says that until late last year, Larijani was the US’s preferred candidate to be a transitional leader (AA/X, JS/X, CA/X).Israel also killed Gholamreza Soleimani, head of the Basij, the paramilitary internal security force that led the January crackdown on protestors, along with his deputy Karishi, and “the majority of the Basij leadership”. The IRGC Aerospace Force chief was also killed. (JP) Before these killings, a leaked cable revealed that Israeli officials shared their assessment with the US that the Iranian regime is “not cracking” and will “fight to the end”. They concluded that if there are popular protests, then “the people will get slaughtered”, but Israel is still encouraging a revolt (WP).The IRGC spokesman t...

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