Israel didn't just get lucky when it managed to kill Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei: It had been digitally circling his compound for decades. In a detailed reconstruction by the Financial Times, sources describe a long game built on hacked Tehran traffic cameras, deeply penetrated mobile networks, and algorithm-driven "pattern of life" dossiers on Khamenei's security detail, including drivers and bodyguards. "We knew Tehran like we know Jerusalem," a current Israeli intelligence official tells the outlet. "And when you know [a place] as well as you know the street you grew up on, you notice a single thing that's out of place."
The Wall Street Journal notes that, as planning for last week's strikes developed, it became clear it would be crucial to take out Khameini right away, because "if he escaped the attack, Israel feared he would be moved to a secure location beyond reach." Social network analysis helped Israeli intelligence sift billions of data points to find decision-makers and other potential targets, all while US cyber-operations went to work "blinding" Iran's defensive forces ahead of the strike. The attack against Khameini finally went down in a central part of Tehran, where the supreme leader's home and offices lie, spurring Al Jazeera to wonder "why the country's most senior military leaders decided to gather in a predictable location while threats of a US-Israel attack were imminent."
The FT piece traces the operation back to two turning points, which took place more than two decades apart: Ariel Sharon's 2001 order that made Iran Mossad's top priority, and Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack, which Israeli insiders say eroded a long-standing hesitation about assassinating foreign leaders. The ultimate result: Operation Epic Fury, a daylight strike using precision munitions after both signals intelligence and a CIA human source confirmed Khamenei's presence. More from these three outlets on the operation.
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