Ali Kamani, a member of the Guards aerospace division was "martyred" in the city of Khomein in Iran's central Markazi province, Fars said, quoting a Guards statement.

In a separate incident, Mohammad Abdoos, 33, an aerospace staff member, died in the northern Semnan province on Sunday while on a "mission", Fars added.

No further details were given on the men or of the circumstances of their deaths.

Two weeks ago, Colonel Ali Esmailzadeh, a commander of the Guards' external operations unit, the Quds Force, died "in an accident in his home," according to state news agency IRNA.

On May 22, Guards Colonel Sayyad Khodai, 50, was killed outside his home in the east of the Iranian capital after attackers on motorbikes shot him five times.

The Guards accused "Zionists" of being behind the high-profile assassination of Khodai and vowed revenge.

The New York Times later reported that Israel told the United States that the Jewish state was behind the killing of Khodai. The US daily cited an anonymous "intelligence official briefed on the communications".

Iran's state television has said that Khodai was a member of the Quds Force and that he was "known" in Syria, where Iran has acknowledged deploying "military advisers".

The Guards described Khodai as a "defender of the sanctuary", a term used for those who work on behalf of Tehran in Syria or Iraq.

The Guards are designated as a terrorist group by the United States.

pdm/pjm

THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY