Middle East crisis: Iran appoints Brigadier General Majid Khademi as intelligence chief

Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC, Brigadier General Mohammad Pakpour, has officially appointed Brigadier General Majid Khademi to lead the IRGC Intelligence Organization, reported Tehran Times.

He had earlier served as the head of the IRGC’s Protection and Intelligence Organization.

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Meanwhile, as deadly missile exchanges between Israel and Iran enter a second week, the United Nations is sounding alarm over the growing toll on civilians, warning of mass displacement and regional instability.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Thursday called for “maximum restraint” and reiterated that both Israel and Iran are bound by international humanitarian law.

“The widescale, continuing attacks by Israel across Iran, and the missile and drone strikes launched in response by Iran, are inflicting severe human rights and humanitarian impacts on civilians, and risk setting the whole region ablaze,” he said in a statement.

“The only way out of this spiralling illogic of escalation is maximum restraint, full respect for international law, and return in good faith to the negotiating table,” he stressed.

Appalling Collateral Damage

The UN rights chief also expressed deep concern over the impact on civilians.

“It is appalling to see how civilians are treated as collateral damage in the conduct of hostilities,” he said, adding that threats and inflammatory rhetoric by senior officials on both sides suggest a “worrying intention” to inflict harm on civilians.

The airstrikes, missile and drone attacks – launched by both Israel and Iran since 13 June – have caused heavy damage to civilian infrastructure and claimed hundreds of lives. 

According to Iranian authorities, at least 224 people have been killed, while human rights groups report significantly higher figures. In Israel, officials report 24 deaths and more than 840 injuries so far.