From Netanyahu's bogus vacation to fake diplomatic talks with US: How Israel fooled Iran before the strike
In the early hours of Friday,
Israel
unleashed a powerful wave of airstrikes across
Iran
, targeting nuclear facilities and key military sites. The assault killed at least two senior Iranian military officers and marked the most intense attack on Iranian soil since the Iran-Iraq
War
of the 1980s—bringing the region dangerously close to a broader war.
Iran responded swiftly, launching a swarm of drones toward Israel. Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
vowed 'severe punishment,' signaling that the confrontation is far from over.
The strikes came at a moment of peak tension over Iran's rapidly advancing nuclear program. Just a day earlier, the International Atomic Energy Agency's Board of Governors formally censured Iran for the first time in 20 years, citing non-cooperation with nuclear inspectors. In defiance, Tehran immediately announced plans to build a third uranium enrichment site and replace its centrifuges with more advanced models.
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While Israeli officials framed the operation as a necessary move to stop Iran from building a nuclear bomb, it remains uncertain how close Tehran truly is to achieving that capability.
Yet, it wasn't just military might that gave Israel the upper hand—it was strategic deception.
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Just hours before the assault, Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu
paid a visit to Jerusalem's Western Wall, placing a note quoting a biblical verse: 'Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion.'
This line from the Book of Numbers (23:24) later revealed itself as the inspiration for the name of the mission:
Operation Rising Lion
. The note, made public only after the strikes began, served as a symbolic signal of what was to come.
Behind the scenes, Israeli intelligence had carefully orchestrated a misinformation campaign to mislead Tehran, according to a report of The Jerusalem Post. In the days leading up to the operation, the Prime Minister's Office reportedly leaked false military strategies, staged a bogus vacation for Netanyahu, and used diplomatic talks with the United States as a smokescreen to divert attention from the impending strike.
By early Friday morning, dozens of Israeli fighter jets roared into Iranian airspace, targeting nuclear enrichment facilities and military infrastructure in a coordinated and sustained wave of attacks. Among the casualties was Hossein Salami, commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, whose death was later confirmed by Iranian state media.
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