Israel killed another Iranian leader, but experts say that doesn't mean it's winning the war

Israel has again shown its unrivaled ability to assassinate high-level enemies, announcing the killing Tuesday of the man widely seen as running Iran

Israel has again shown its unrivaled ability to assassinate high-level enemies, announcing the killing Tuesday of the man widely seen as running Iran.

Ali Larijani's death, which was confirmed by Iranian authorities, deals a significant psychological and logistical blow to the Islamic Republic, already reeling from the killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, whose successor son has yet to appear in public. But, analysts told NBC News, it may also cause the regime to harden rather than weaken as its opponents may hope.

Ultimately, the apparent killing of Larijani, along with that of Basij militia chief Gen. Gholam Reza Soleimani, may be little comfort to the rest of the world in the short term as it faces an oil crisis and a global economic shock in the wake of this war waged alongside the United States.

Nevertheless, Israel says it won’t stop at Larijani, Soleimani, Khamenei and other senior officials before them.

Announcing the dual killings after overnight strikes, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said his military would “continue pursuing” Iran's leaders and “repeatedly cut off the head of the octopus and prevent it from regrowing.”