Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was assassinated in a coordinated Israeli-US operation that took just 60 seconds, according to military officials. He was killed along with seven members of Iran's top security leadership, around a dozen family members and close entourage, and 40 other senior Iranian leaders in near-simultaneous strikes at several locations in Tehran.
The operation was the culmination of decades of intelligence gathering by Israeli secret services, with the CIA and other US agencies providing technological resources and manpower over the past six months. Israeli spies had built a detailed file on Khamenei's daily routine and those of his associates, according to experts and officials.
However, some intelligence veterans have questioned the strategic wisdom of the assassination. Yossi Melman, a respected Israeli analyst and author specialising in intelligence, said: "The problem is that Israel is in love with assassinations … and we never learn that it is not the solution. We have killed all the leaders of Hamas. They are still there. It’s the same with Hezbollah. The leaders are always replaced."
The timing of the strike was determined by CIA intelligence about a meeting of top Iranian officials at a leadership compound in Tehran on Saturday morning. The CIA was able to tell Israeli counterparts that Khamenei would be present, according to the New York Times. Amos Yadlin, a former head of Israel's military intelligence, called it "a tactical surprise, an operational surprise".
Reuel Gerecht, a former CIA targeting officer and analyst at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, said the US brought significant technological assets, while Israel provided the human intelligence networks on the ground. "If you combine the technological capacity with the networks on the ground that would certainly amplify its effectiveness," he said.
The assassination marks the first time Israel has killed a head of state, and comes amid an air offensive by Israel and the US aimed at overthrowing Iran's clerical regime. The Mossad has long focused on Iran, building deep networks of informants and agents. The full consequences of the operation remain unclear, with experts warning it could alienate potential supporters or pave the way for more radical opponents.
