Alexandar Sullivan:
A months-long intelligence effort by the United States and Israel culminated in a rare daytime strike that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in central Tehran on Saturday morning.
Rather than striking under cover of darkness, officials seized what they described as a narrow window of opportunity after intelligence revealed that Khamenei and other senior Iranian leaders would be meeting at separate sites within a heavily guarded compound. According to reports, the CIA provided critical intelligence, which was shared with Israel to execute the attack.
At approximately 09:40 local time, Israeli jets launched what was described as the opening salvo of “Operation Roaring Lion,” firing long-range, precision munitions at the compound. Multiple bombs were reportedly used to penetrate underground protections. Other locations in the capital were also hit, and Iran later confirmed the deaths of several senior defense officials, including Ali Shamkhani, Brig. Gen. Aziz Nasirzadeh, and Gen. Mohammad Pakpour.
President Donald Trump, monitoring events from Mar-a-Lago, Florida, later said Khamenei “was unable to avoid our Intelligence and Highly Sophisticated Tracking Systems.”
The strike followed weeks of escalating tensions, military buildup in the region, and stalled diplomatic talks over Iran’s nuclear program. While succession plans were reportedly in place in Tehran, the long-term consequences remain uncertain, marking a dramatic turning point in an already volatile conflict.
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