US President Donald Trump said Washington knew the position of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but had no intention of attacking him "at least for now".
The message was posted by Mr. Trump on the social network Truth Social, in the context of escalating tensions between Israel and Iran.
We know exactly where the Supreme Leader is hiding. He is an easy target, but safe there - we will not kill him, at least for now, Trump wrote.
The US president also stressed that Washington's patience is gradually running low: "We do not want missiles to fall on US civilians or soldiers. Our patience is being tested."
Mr Trump's statement comes as the Israeli military confirmed it had killed Ali Shadmani, the wartime chief of staff of the Central Command Khatam al-Anbiya, a strategic unit of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The airstrike took place in the capital Tehran and on the Israeli side, Mr. Shadmani is the most senior military figure in Iran today, and the closest relatives of leader Ali Khamenei in the military.
Information about Mr. Shadmani's death has not been confirmed by Iran. He was appointed after his predecessor, General Gholamali Rashid, was killed in another airstrike carried out by Israel not long before. The consecutive elimination of two senior generals is considered a serious escalation in the conflict between Iran and Israel.
According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Shadmani played a key role in organizing and approving Iran's attack plans through the Khatam al-Anbiya Command. He had a direct influence on plans to attack Israel, the IDF said in a statement.
Israel's public recognition of being behind airstrikes targeting top Iranian generals is seen as a strategy to disrupt the enemy's military command system. These moves are raising concerns about a new round of confrontation in the Middle East, as the two sides continuously take action and react to each other.
There are currently no details on how Israel carried out the attack targeting Mr. Shadmani, but analysts predict that Iran will find it difficult to sit still in the face of this development.
