Tel Aviv [Israel], March 6 (ANI) — Israel decided in November to target Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Defence Minister Israel Katz said, according to The Jerusalem Post. Katz told N12 News that during a late-year high-level security meeting convened with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the goal of eliminating Khamenei was set, with the operation originally planned for mid-2026.
Katz said the timeline was moved forward amid domestic unrest in Iran. Israel briefed Washington and advanced the plan around January out of concern that Tehran’s pressured clerical leadership might strike Israeli and US assets across the region.
The killing occurred during the opening hours of Operations Roaring Lion and Epic Fury, which began on Saturday. Israeli authorities say this marks the first time a sovereign nation’s top leader has been killed by an airstrike. Following the initial strike, the Israel Defence Forces intensified air operations, conducting what it described as a 12th wave of strikes in Tehran aimed at Iranian security and military infrastructure.
High-priority targets reported by the IDF included the headquarters of a special unit in Alborz province responsible for internal security, facilities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Basij paramilitary, a central command centre for Iran’s internal security forces, and multiple sites used to store and produce weaponry. The Israeli Air Force said it is continuing to deepen the impact on the mechanisms of what it termed the Iranian terror regime in Tehran, framing the campaign as sustained action against ballistic missile and nuclear-related programs and as part of an effort to facilitate regime change.
These strikes followed broader exchanges earlier in the week. In retaliation for Khamenei’s death, Iran launched waves of drone and missile attacks across several Arab countries, targeting American military bases and Israeli assets.
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