# The strike on Ahmadinejad's house

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "The strike on Ahmadinejad's house," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-strike-on-ahmadinejads-house/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*On the first day of the 2026 war, reports placed one of the targets in Tehran at Narmak, believed to be the residence of former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. John Kiriakou broke into the broadcast to call it gratuitous and an act of murder: Ahmadinejad is retired, holds no authority, and — in Kiriakou's description — was a moderate.*

- **Target:** Narmak, eastern Tehran — reported residence of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
- **Reported by:** Al Jazeera, during the 28 February 2026 broadcast
- **Ahmadinejad's status:** Former president; retired; "not in any position of authority"
- **Kiriakou's characterisation:** "He was a moderate, too"
- **His verdict:** "Targeting him is simply an act of murder" — "It's gratuitous"
- **The comparison he drew:** Going to war against Afghanistan and killing Hamid Karzai in Kabul

**The strike on Ahmadinejad's house** was reported mid-broadcast on 28 February 2026, and [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) interrupted the show to address it — *"Ted, may I add one thing? … this also just in from Al Jazeera."*[1]

The report placed one of the targeted sites in Tehran at Narmak, in the east of the city, *"believed to be the residence of former populist president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad."*[1][2]

## Why he singled it out

Kiriakou's objection rests on Ahmadinejad holding nothing that could be described as a war aim. *"Now, listen. He's the former president. He's not in any position of authority. He's retired."*[2]

He then added a characterisation that runs against the man's Western reputation, and against Ahmadinejad's own record in office: *"He was a moderate, too."*[2]

The verdict follows without qualification. *"Targeting him is simply an act of murder."* Pressed, he repeated the word twice: *"It's gratuitous. It's gratuitous."*[2]

## The comparison

To make the category clear he moved the case to a war he knows better: *"It would be like going to war against Afghanistan and and killing [Hamid Karzai](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/hamid-karzai)"* — who, he noted, is still living in Kabul.[2]

The point of the analogy is that a retired head of state in his own house is not a military target under any reading, and that striking one is therefore not a proportionality question but a killing without a purpose attached.

## See also

- [2026 Iran war](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/2026-iran-war)
- [Hamid Karzai](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/hamid-karzai)
- [The Iranian elementary school strike](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/iran-elementary-school-strike)
- [Killing Khamenei](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/killing-khamenei)

## Sources

1. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 46:37. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=2797s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/
2. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 47:08. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=2828s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-strike-on-ahmadinejads-house/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt