Khamenei Didn't Expect Strike, Especially in Daylight

US, Israeli intelligence efforts aligned in time to plan Saturday's attack on Tehran
Posted Mar 1, 2026 2:39 PM CST
Khamenei Didn't Expect Strike, Especially in Daylight
A young woman cries as she mourns the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during a gathering in the southern Suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, on Sunday.   (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

The US and Israel had been waiting for a chance to kill Iran's senior political and military leaders with one strike. When intelligence identified the opportunity as a meeting Saturday in Tehran, it brought another advantage: The strike could be carried out in daylight after initially being planned for nighttime, the Wall Street Journal reported. On top of that, the CIA learned in time that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would be at the same location and told Israel; the agency had been tracking the country's supreme leader for months, per the New York Times. Israeli jets then dropped 30 bombs on Khamenei's compound.

The success reflected the ability of Israel's intelligence services to catch enemies unaware, per the Journal. Past attacks have been anticipated late at night, "when there is cover of darkness," said Amos Yadlin, a former head of Israeli military intelligence. The daylight strike "was a tactical surprise," he said. Although he had an underground bunker, Khamenei was holding an above-ground, routine meeting with advisers and never saw the attack coming, per Axios. Intelligence findings had led to planners settling on a window for the attack more than a week in advance, based on knowledge that three meetings would be held.

The Israeli operation involved relatively few aircraft, which were armed with long-range and highly accurate munitions. Around 9:40am in Tehran, long-range missiles hit the compound while senior national security officials were gathered in one building. Khamenei was in another, per the Times. The notion of such an attack first surfaced in December, per Axios, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Trump at Mar-a-Lago.

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