Decision to kill Khamenei made months ago, strike date was moved up

Katz said the timetable changed after intelligence indicated that the Iranian regime might attempt a preemptive missile attack amid unrest inside Iran.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Defense Minister Israel Katz said Thursday that Israel moved up the operation that killed Iranian leader Ali Khamenei after new intelligence raised concerns that Iran could launch a preemptive missile strike against Israel and US forces, offering new details about the planning behind the opening phase of Operation “Roaring Lion.”

In an interview with Channel 12 News on Thursday, Katz said the decision to target Khamenei had been formulated months earlier during discussions between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a small group of senior officials.

According to Katz, those deliberations took place in November, when the objective of eliminating the Iranian leader was set.

The original plan, he said, envisioned carrying out the operation later in the year.

Katz said the timetable changed after intelligence indicated that the Iranian regime might attempt a preemptive missile attack amid unrest inside Iran.

As a result, the operation was advanced.

The strike itself was initially scheduled for Saturday night but was ultimately carried out earlier than planned.

“We thought that like Nasrallah he would hide in a bunker, but that didn’t help him,” Katz said.

He added that new intelligence led decision-makers to move the attack forward to Saturday morning.

“This leader, for whom we were a target for annihilation, was eliminated by us. The tactical surprise was perfect and we achieved all of the opening objectives.”

Katz also highlighted the role of coordination with the United States during the campaign. He said Israeli and American aircraft are currently operating together over Iran.

“President Trump and Netanyahu reached alignment on objectives,” the defense minister said.

Katz described the cooperation between Washington and Jerusalem as a key factor behind the opening strike and the operation that killed Khamenei.

“We will act here as long as required, without any time limitation,” Katz said. “The power of the opening strike and the elimination of the Iranian leader were achieved after Prime Minister Netanyahu succeeded in bringing about intimate cooperation with the president of the United States, with identical views and identical objectives. This is a historic operation by the IDF and the United States military, working together here.”

He said the broader objective is the defeat of what he called the terror regime and the creation of conditions that would allow the Iranian people to overthrow it.