TEHRAN

Brig. Gen. Ismail Kaani, the commander of Iran's Quds Force, made a public appearance in Tehran on Sunday after nearly two weeks of speculation regarding his fate, including rumors that he had been killed or injured in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut.

Footage broadcast by Iranian state television showed Kaani attending a ceremony in Tehran for the return of Brig. Gen. Abbas Nilforoushan's body, an Iranian officer killed in an Israeli attack in Beirut on Sept. 27. Kaani, accompanied by several high-ranking Iranian political and military officials, took part in the reception ceremony honoring Nilforoushan.

Reports had previously circulated that Kaani had been targeted in the same Israeli airstrike that killed Nilforoushan and was allegedly meeting with Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah at the time. Following the attack, Kaani reportedly visited the Hezbollah office in Tehran.

On Oct. 4, Western media fueled further speculation, claiming that Kaani might have been killed or injured in the Beirut airstrike. Additional rumors suggested that he was later interrogated by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps over alleged intelligence leaks to Israel, during which he reportedly suffered a heart attack.

*Writing by Gizem Nisa Cebi in Istanbul