Shortly after the Israeli defence ministry announced that "most of the Revolutionary Guard air force leadership was neutralised," the military clarified that several senior commanders had been "eliminated".

It said that air force commander Amirali Hajizadeh, the drone force commander, and the aerial command chief were all killed by an Israeli air strike.

"The senior chain of command of the air force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) had assembled in an underground command centre to prepare for an attack on the State of Israel," the military said.

"As part of the combined opening strike, Israeli air force fighter jets struck the command centre where the commander of the IRGC's air force, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, was located along with other senior officials."

It said that Hajizadeh had played a central role in Iran's "plan for Israel's destruction", which Israel has said its attack was intended to foil.

"In addition, the senior officials who were eliminated led the attack on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities in September 2019," the statement added.

The Revolutionary Guards control Iran's arsenal of ballistic missiles and are involved in defending the country's airspace.