Exclusive: IRGC Killed A Quds Force Colonel On Suspicion Of Espionage - Sources

The sources said that Colonel Ali Esmailzadeh died when he fell from the roof of his home in Jahan Nama area of Karaj.

He was a close colleague of Colonel Hassan Sayyad-Khodaei, the acting commander of the elite Qods Unit 840, who was shot dead behind the wheel of his car outside his home in Tehran on May 22 by two gunmen who fled the scene on a motorbike.

Unit 840 is a very secretive group within the Quds Force and there are no photos of its members available.

Iran International’s sources also said that after he fell from the roof, Esmailzadeh was taken to Shahid Madani hospital where after examination doctors pronounced him dead. Based on this report, officials of the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) told Esmailzadeh’s family that the reason for his death was suicide. The IRGC officials further told the family that he ended his life due to psychological problems after separation from his wife and has left a note about his action.

A European security source last week had told Iran International that Col. Sayyad-Khodaei, who was assassinated eight days earlier, was in charge of planning terror operations outside Iran, including attacks in India, Taiwan, Cyprus and Georgia. Suspicions for his assassination fell on Israel and according to some reports, Israeli officials told the United States that they had targeted Sayyad-Khodaei.

In the case of Esmailzadeh, Iran International’s sources said that after Sayyad Khodaei’s killing the IRGC intelligence looking for security leaks from within the Qods Force became suspicious of Esmailzadeh and decided to eliminate him by organizing a suicide scenario.