Sadegh Omidzadeh (; died 20 January 2024), also known as Hojatollah Omidvar (), was an Iranian general and head of the

Quds Force The Quds Force () is one of five branches of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). It specializes in unconventional warfare and military intelligence operations. U.S. Army's Iraq War General Stanley McChrystal describes the Quds Fo ...

intelligence unit in Syria. He was killed in Damascus by an Israeli airstrike.

Military career

On 14 August 2012, Omidzadeh, along with other Iranian officials, was captured by

Syrian opposition Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

groups in the vicinity of Damascus airport. Subsequently, he was released following mediation efforts by Qatar. In June 2023, reports surfaced indicating that Omidzadeh was planning attacks on American forces in Syria. His specific focus involved targeting U.S.

Humvee The High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV; colloquial: Humvee) is a family of Military light utility vehicle, light, four-wheel drive Military vehicle#Military trucks, military trucks and utility vehicles produced by AM General. It ...

and

Cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') (, ''Help:Pronunciation respelling key, KOO-gər''), also called puma, mountain lion, catamount and panther is a large small cat native to the Americas. It inhabits North America, North, Central America, Cent ...

armored vehicles within Syrian territory.

Death

On 20 January 2024, Omidzadeh, along with four other Iranian officials, Ali Aghazadeh, Saeed Karimi, Hossein Mohammadi, and Mohammad Amin Samadi, was killed during a meeting at a building in the Mezzeh district of

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

. The Israeli airstrikes, as reported by the

Syrian Observatory for Human Rights The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (also known as SOHR; ), founded in May 2006, is a United Kingdom-based information office whose stated aim is to document human rights abuses in Syria; since 2011 it has focused on the Syrian Civil War. ...

, resulted in the complete destruction of the building, leading to the death of at least 10 military personnel. His death occurred less than a month after Israel had assassinated another high-ranking Iranian general, Razi Mousavi, in Damascus, and two weeks after the assassination of Saleh al-Arouri in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Omidzadeh, Sadegh 20th-century births Year of birth missing 2024 deaths Assassinated Iranian people Assassinations in Syria Deaths by Israeli airstrikes Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel of the Syrian civil war Targeted killing by Israel Quds Force personnel Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps brigadier generals