ISTANBUL

The Israeli army claimed Tuesday that it assassinated Iran's newly appointed wartime chief of staff Ali Shadmani in an overnight Tuesday strike on the capital Tehran.

“Following precise intelligence received by the IDF (army) Intelligence Directorate and a sudden opportunity overnight (Tuesday), the IAF (air force) struck a staffed command center in the heart of Tehran and eliminated Ali Shadmani, the wartime chief of staff,” the army said in a statement.

He commanded both the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian army, it added.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed Shadmani to succeed the late Gen. Gholam Ali Rashid, head of the central headquarters of the Iranian military, who was killed in Israeli airstrikes on Iran last Friday, according to Iranian state media.

There has been no comment from Iran on the Israeli statement so far.