Illustrative image. (Israeli Defense Forces)
Israel wanted to kill Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during its 12-day war with Iran, but the opportunity never presented itself, Defense Minister Israel Katz revealed in several separate interviews aired on June 26.
“If he had been in our sights, we would have taken him out,” Katz told Channel 13, adding that Israel “searched a lot” for Khamenei but that the operational opportunity did not arise.
The minister made similar comments in interviews with Kan and Channel 12, adding that Israel had an “enforcement policy” that involved maintaining aerial superiority over Iran and ensuring, via strike if necessary, that the country does not restart its nuclear or missile programs.
He also conveyed that Israel didn’t know the location of all of Iran’s enriched uranium, and that it did not go into the war knowing the United States would join the attack.
Israel started the war on June 13, stating that its goal was to cripple Iran’s nuclear program. A ceasefire was suddenly announced on June 24, just two days after the U.S. joined the war by attacking three key nuclear sites in the Islamic Republic.
Katz said in the interviews that Khamenei had been marked for death, but that Israel was unable to locate him once he hid in a bunker.
“Khamenei understood this, went very deep underground, broke off contact with the commanders… so in the end it wasn’t realistic,” the minister told Kan.
Israel killed more than 30 senior Iranian military commanders during the war, and was able to assassinate at least 11 of the Islamic Republic’s top nuclear scientists.
Katz told Channel 13 that Israel is no longer looking to assassinate Khamenei as a ceasefire with Iran is currently in place.
“There’s a difference — before the ceasefire, after the ceasefire,” the minister said.
Nevertheless, in the interview with Kan, he issued another threat to Khamenei, comparing him to Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Hezbollah who was killed by Israel last year, and advised him to remain in a bunker.
“I wouldn’t recommend that he stay tranquil,” Katz said. “He should learn from the late Nasrallah, who sat for a long time deep in the bunker. I recommend that he do the same thing.”
Notably, Katz appeared to imply in the interviews that Israel maintained air superiority over Iran and would attack again if it deems it necessary.
“We won’t let Iran develop nuclear weapons and threaten long-range missiles,” he told Channel 12.
Meanwhile, he told Channel 13 that “the policy of the State of Israel and the government of Israel is to implement enforcement actions against Iran.” He added that the policy would be “like in Lebanon,” where Israel continued to launch strikes against Hezbollah post a ceasefire brokered by the U.S., “just times 100.”
The success of the Israeli attack on Iran is still in debate, with some reports suggesting that it set Iran’s nuclear program back by several years, or just a few months.
One thing is sure, however, and that is that the short war was just the first round of larger confrontation that could go on for years.
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notice israel kills people who are rational and never surrender…leaving behind irrational types to justify war mongering. raisi, abdollahian, nasrallah, haniyeh, soleimani….were rational men who did not surrender. israel is only creating new generations of fighters. maybe this is the strategy of the jew. their life story afterall is kvetching and playing victim
the arrogance is amazing. these people routinely murder negotiators, then call for further negotiations, and complain when iran declines to take part. goy whore chumpo casually threatens to murder khamenei like his joo masters, and expects him to take part in further talks.
they are now installing shah pahlavi.
shah pahlavi is in the ussa. operation “risng lion” was a failure
that is because israel exhibits malign narcissism and psychopathy as a national identity and national characteristic. they can delude themselves that they can ignore international law and basic human decency without consequences — but that is not the case. they are upending every aspect of human rights and international order. there is a reason why they have been kicked out of 100+ countries historically during different ages. it’s no coincidence.
and yet now they rule those same 100+ countries from behind. so why would they want to change if it worked well.
and together with putler and sultan erdogan, he puts people like jolani.
turkey and azerbaijan cannot be trusted
turkey and azerbeydshan can be very well trusted to be a good friend and partner of isreal. isreali tech is the base for the bayraktar drone that helped the azeris to drive the armenians out of their homes in karabakh. the biggest victrony in azerbeydhshans recent history. the azeris killed supported the isrealis in killing the former president of iran as part of the payment.
look, you russians betrayed syria and sold it to trump for parts of ukraine. therefore, iran will fall sooner or later.
iran is not negotiable
russia never owned syria and so how should it sell it? russia was allways as a deterent there so the western forces would not enter. iran was the one that supported syria on the ground. this ended when one president was killed and another came to power who wanted to make deals with the west. assad tried to offset it with a deal with the gulf arabs who played him and so he ended without any support.
the strike on iran and fall of syria proved that russia will do nothing to help its “allies”.
they are lying cowards…heheheh