Israel targets IRGC officials, nuclear scientist, and missile bases in Iran (June 22–21 updates)

Over the past 72 hours, Israel has intensified its air campaign across Iran, striking missile and drone infrastructure in Esfahan, Bushehr, Ahvaz, Yazd, and Qom. Targets included the Imam Hossein missile base in Yazd, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) drone and air defense facilities, and the Shahid Mostafa Khomeini military base.

Senior IRGC and IRGC-Qods Force commanders tied to weapons transfers, regional proxy coordination, and nuclear development were killed. Despite Tehran’s calls for retaliation, Hezbollah, Hamas, and other allied militias have mostly stayed out of the fight so far.

June 22 kinetic operations

• Around 30 Israeli fighter jets carried out strikes using over 60 precision-guided munitions against dozens of military sites across Iran.
• For the first time, the strategic “Imam Hossein” missile base in Yazd was targeted. The site housed Khorramshahr long-range missiles, roughly 60 of which had been launched toward Israel.
• Simultaneous Israeli strikes in Esfahan, Bushehr, and Ahvaz hit missile launchers, facilities producing air defense batteries, the IRGC’s Third Drone Unit command center, and nearby drone depots.
• Israeli aircraft reportedly eliminated Iranian personnel loading missile launchers.
• Footage reportedly shows an explosion at the IRGC’s Sadoughi training base and missile site in Yazd.
• In Qom, four IRGC members were killed and two injured after a strike on the Shahid Mostafa Khomeini military base, according to provincial officials.

June 21 kinetic operations

• The Israeli military struck an Iranian naval base in Bandar Abbas, as well as a facility in Bandar Lengeh. Israeli outlets claimed that a vessel hit in Bandar Abbas belonged to the IRGC’s intelligence branch.
• Around 50 Israeli jets launched approximately 150 precision munitions targeting military infrastructure across Iran.
• The Isfahan nuclear facility, used for uranium conversion, was struck again, along with a centrifuge production site.
• Other targets included drone-launch vehicles, missile depots, launch platforms, radar systems, and air-defense sites.

Key Iranian regime figures eliminated on June 21

• Behnam Shahriari, head of the Qods Force’s weapons transfer unit, was killed while traveling by car in western Iran. He oversaw arms and cash transfers to Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis.
• Saeed Izadi, commander of the Qods Force’s Palestine Unit and one of the architects of the October 7 attack, was killed in a Qom safehouse.
• Aminpour Joudaki, head of the IRGC Aerospace Force’s Second Drone Unit, was killed.
• Abu Ali Khalil (Abu Ali Jawad), the former chief bodyguard of Hezbollah’s late Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an Israeli airstrike while visiting Iran from Iraq.
• Seyed Isar Tabatabaei Qomsheh, a nuclear scientist, was reportedly killed along with his wife in a strike on their home.

Explosions and air-defense activity were reported across Tehran, Mashhad, Shiraz, Isfahan, Karaj, and Tabriz on June 20. In Shiraz, strikes reportedly hit areas near the Ahmad bin Musa and Imam Ali bases. In Tabriz, flashes were seen near IRGC launch platforms. Israeli jets reportedly launched over 30 missiles at western Iran, hitting IRGC missile sites.

Regional militias largely hold back as Iran stands alone

Hamas issued a sharply worded statement condemning the US strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, calling it “a dangerous escalation” and adding that the Trump administration and Israel are “fully responsible for the grave repercussions of this aggression.”

Hamas also signaled its intent to stay out of the conflict, expressing confidence in Iran’s ability to manage the crisis independently. “We affirm our solidarity with our brothers in the Islamic Republic … and our complete confidence in Iran’s ability to defend its sovereignty and the interests of its people.”

Despite the escalating strikes on Iran, Hezbollah in Lebanon has also opted not to join the fight. A spokesperson for the group said on June 21 that Hezbollah has no plans to retaliate against Israel or the United States following US President Donald Trump’s order authorizing direct attacks on Iranian nuclear sites.

“The Islamic Republic is a strong country capable of defending itself,” a Hezbollah spokesperson told Newsweek on June 21. “Logic dictates that it can stand up to the U.S. and Israel. Therefore, Hezbollah remains committed to all terms of the ceasefire agreement.”

Hezbollah is ostensibly in a state of truce with Israel after a Lebanon-Israel ceasefire agreement was reached in November, which followed over a year of cross-border hostilities triggered by Hamas’s surprise assault on Israel and Israel’s devastating response in Gaza and southern Lebanon. However, Israel has continued significant kinetic activity in Lebanon in recent months due to claims Hezbollah has routinely violated the terms of the agreement.

Other Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, including Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al Nujaba, have mostly issued threats instead of acting militarily. However, US bases in Iraq and Syria have reportedly come under attack by Iranian-backed militias five times since Israel launched strikes against Iran last week—though no group has officially claimed the operations. Separately, the Houthis in Yemen launched two missiles at Israel on June 13 and June 16, a continuation of their campaign supporting Hamas in Gaza, as well as in support of Iran.

Janatan Sayeh is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies focused on Iranian domestic affairs and the Islamic Republic’s regional malign influence.