&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Israel had planned to eliminate Khamenei in November last year, says Defence Minister Katz")
Israel and US combined strike on Iran on Feb 28 killed its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei along with several top leaders of the country. However, the plan of eliminating Khamenei was conceptualised as early as November last year by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his aides, said Defense Minister Israel Katz on Thursday.
He further said that the attack date was however, moved further due to the mass anti-regime protests in the Islamic Republic, which created conditions for the US to act and launch a strike along with Israel.
In an interview to Channel 12 Katz said that in November 2025, a select group of officials held talks with Netanyahu “in a very small forum” on the possibility of assassinating Khamenei, reported Times of Israel.
Israel initially did not share plans with US
Israel did not share its plans with US as its leaders were “under the assumption that we might have to carry it [the assassination] out on our own.”
But the plan changed and a kind of understanding emerged between the two countries after the anti-government protests erupted in the Islamic Republic at the end of December. Thousands of protesters were killed at the hands of regime forces, with toll said to be in thousands.
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Also there was fear that the domestic unrest could instigate Tehran to launch a preemptive strike on Israel.
“It surprised everyone. The unrest didn’t just create an opportunity — there was also serious concern at the time that, because of the pressure on the regime from the protests, the regime might launch a preemptive missile strike on Israel and on American forces in the region,” said Katz.
