Iran appointed Habibollah Sayyari as temporary commander of the Iranian Armed Forces, and Ahmad Vahidi as temporary commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Friday morning, according to reports in Iranian media.

This follows Israel conducting airstrikes on Iran as part of Operation "Rising Lion," including the targeted killing of IRGC commander Major-General Hossein Salami and Iranian Armed Forces chief Major-General Mohammad Bagheri.

Sayyari is a former Marine who served as Iranian naval chief from 2007 until 2017.

Vahidi served as Iran's defense minister from September 2009 until August 2013, and interior minister from August 2021 until August 2024. He also rose through the ranks of the Iranian terrorist organization, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-QF), commanding the terror group from 1988 to 1998.

During his time in the IRGC-QF, he participated in terror activity worldwide, including being linked with the 1994 bombing of the Jewish community center in Buenos Aires.

Iranian missiles are displayed at the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force Museum in Tehran, Iran, November 15, 2024. (credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia press Agency) via REUTERS)
Iranian missiles are displayed at the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force Museum in Tehran, Iran, November 15, 2024. (credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia press Agency) via REUTERS)

Threat of Iranian military retaliation

Israel is expecting retaliatory strikes from Iran to begin over the coming hours, Israeli media reported on Friday morning, citing defense assessments.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said that Israel will receive a harsh punishment and that with this attack, "Israel has prepared a bitter fate for itself, which it will surely receive," he threatened on Iranian state TV Friday morning after Israel struck multiple nuclear and military targets within the country.

This is a developing story.