Qaani’s silence following the attack led some to believe he had been killed but caused others in Tehran to suspect he was collaborating with Israel.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force Esmail Qaani is reported to have suffered a heart attack while being interrogated about suspected collaboration with Israel.
“He was investigated for an intelligence brief,” a source told Sky News Arabic. “He was moved to a hospital, and his bureau chief is suspected of connections with Israel.”
The New York Times reported last week that Qaani was thought to have died in the attack that killed Safieddine and many senior Hezbollah terrorists.
Qaani, who was thought to have been killed and injured by an Israeli strike on October 3rd, was reported as alive, but that he and his team were being detained for questioning.
Following the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, senior Hezbollah leaders held a meeting on October 3rd in Beirut, which was the target of an airstrike that killed the terror group’s successor, Hashem Safieddine.
Shortly after the incident, the New York Times reported that Qaani was suspected as dead or severely injured, but according to other a source quoted by Reuters, Qaani never attended the meeting.
In addition, Qaani’s silence following the attack led some to believe he had been killed, but caused others in Tehran to suspect he was collaborating with Israel.
A source within IRGC in Beirut told the New York Times that Qaani’s silence after the fatal strike had “caused panic” among Tehran officials.
In addition, his backing out of the meeting of Hezbollah officials was viewed as suspicious in Tehran.
Qaani was conspicuously absent from a memorial service hosted in Tehran by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, honoring Nasrallah.
“The Iranians have serious suspicions that the Israelis have infiltrated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, especially those working in the Lebanese arena, so everyone is currently under investigation,” a source told Middle East Eye.
Esmail Qaani replaced Qasem Soleimani, the legendary commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds force killed by the U.S. in 2020.