Ali Larijani Killed; Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi Asserts Government Structure Remains Strong

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has asserted that the assassination of senior Iranian officials by the United States and Israel will not paralyse the government.

Araghchi made these remarks shortly after Iran confirmed that Ali Larijani, the country’s security chief and one of the most influential politicians, was killed in an airstrike on the outskirts of Tehran on Tuesday.

“I do not know why America and Israel still fail to understand this point: the Islamic Republic of Iran has a strong political structure with established political, economic and social institutions,” Araghchi told Al Jazeera.

“The presence or absence of a single individual does not affect this structure,” he added.

Araghchi acknowledged that influential individuals do exist and each plays their own role, with some more effective than others. “However, what matters is that Iran’s political system is an extremely robust structure,” the diplomat said.

Sultan Al-Khulaifi, a senior researcher at the Centre for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies, stated that Israel appears to be pursuing a strategy of “decapitating regime figures” in Iran. However, he noted that Iran’s government system is well-established and remains resilient.

“This is an institutional regime compared with Iraq and Afghanistan,” he told Al Jazeera.

“Therefore, the assassination of one person does not mean there is no successor,” said Al-Khulaifi, referring to Israel’s unconfirmed claims regarding the killing of the Supreme National Security Council chief, Ali Larijani.