Iran moved quickly on June 13 and June 14 to replace the commanders of its armed forces after Israel’s strikes eliminated many key commanders.

Israel eliminated Major General Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff (AFGS) and Major General Hossein Salami, commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the surprise attack on June 13.

Other killed included Major General Gholam-Ali Rashid, the commander of the Khatam al-Anbia Central Headquarters, and Major General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of the IRGC's Air Defense arm.

Iran didn’t want any appearance of a power vacuum and moved immediately to appoint temporary commanders in the place of the fallen commanders. For instance, Habibollah Sayyari was named temporary commander of the Iranian Armed Forces, and Ahmad Vahidi was named temporary commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Friday morning.

It doesn’t appear either man would stay in his position very long, and both appear to have been replaced within hours by permanent appointments. It is likely they will appear in other leadership roles.

IDF infographic confirming the killing of Iran's Gholam Ali Rashid, Hossein Salami, Mohammad Bagheri (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
IDF infographic confirming the killing of Iran's Gholam Ali Rashid, Hossein Salami, Mohammad Bagheri (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
Sayyari was a former naval officer while Vahidi was a former head of the Quds Force and former Defense Minister. Sayyari has critiqued the IRGC in the past and supported investing in Iran’s “deterrence” power.

Who are the new replacements?

Saturday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had named Major General Mohammad Pakpour as the new commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC).

Born in 1961 in Arak, he studied geography and then became a member of the IRGC Quds Force. He was involved in the suppression of Kurds and was sanctioned by European countries.

Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi was named the new chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, state media IRNA reported Friday. Mousavi is replacing Bagheri. Mousavi had been the commander of Iran’s army.

He left that post to take up his new role. He was quickly replaced as well by Major General Amir Hatami who was appointed the new Chief Commander of the Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran by Ali Khamenei. Hatami was Defense Minister from 2013-2021.

Meanwhile, Major General Ali Shademani was appointed the new commander of the Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters, succeeding Commander Gholam Ali Rashid, who had been killed on June 13.

To replace Hajizadeh, Iran has tapped Brig. Gen. Majid Mousavi. Mousavi has been a deputy head of the IRGC in the past and is an expert in Iran’s missile program. He has served in Iran’s missile force since the 1980s. As such, he is well placed to take over the reins of Hajizadeh’s key role.

While Iran moved to replace many key officers, it is not clear who will replace some of the others who were reported killed in Israel’s strikes. For instance, Ali Shamkhani was a close aide to Khamenei, and it is not clear who will take up his role. In addition, IRGC Quds Force head Esmail Qaani was also reported killed. He had replaced Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike in 2020. He ran the Quds Force for five years. 

Iran will also need to replace Major General Reza Mehrabi, Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence Affairs, and Major General Mahdi Rabbani, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, who were killed.