2 Members of Iran’s IRGC ‘Martyred’ in Weekend Incidents

Two members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) serving in the aerospace division died in two separate incidents while on active duty over the weekend. The men were both labeled by official state media as martyrs, meaning that they died or were killed during important assignments. There have been several unusual deaths of IRGC leaders announced in recent weeks. The IRGC runs Iran’s ballistic missile program as well as some of the country’s air defenses. Ali Kamani died in Iran’s central city of Khomein – home to Iran’s Arak heavy water reactor, important to the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program, in what was reported to be simply a “car accident.” Mohammad Abdous was reported to have died “on a mission” while working in Iran’s Semnan province, home to the Imam Khomeini Spaceport used in satellite launches. Their deaths come after last month’s assassination of IRGC Col. Hassan Sayad Khodayari on the street outside his home in Tehran, followed days later by the death of Col. Ali Esmailzadeh who allegedly fell off the roof of his home. But at least one Iranian report has said that Esmailzadeh, who was close to Khodayari, was killed over suspicions he provided information that was used in the assassination attack. On May 31, Iranian scientist Ayoob Entezari, who worked on missiles and drones at a research and development center, died of an unspecified illness or of food poisoning, according to Iranian media, and may have been intentionally poisoned.