South Korean media: Mossad has been collecting human intelligence for 20 years, and now controls every move of Khamenei

¬ The backing of precise strikes - Mossad and CIA's accurate intelligence ... The Guardian: "Khamenei and others died within 60 seconds after the attack" ... Destroying surface-to-air missile batteries, penetrating the air defense network

On February 28, the joint "Epic Fury" military operation by the United States and Israel was not only supported by the CIA's intelligence, but also the vast "human intelligence" system built by Israel's Mossad over decades played a significant role. By using strong intelligence capabilities to monitor the movements of Iran's top leader and report to the command level, then launching precise strikes, they ultimately secured a decisive advantage at the beginning of the war.

On February 2, according to a report by The New York Times (NYT) citing statements from Israeli government officials, on the morning of February 28, when Israel began its attack, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, was located in the ground floor of his official residence in Tehran. That is, it was speculated that he would move to an underground secret bunker as the attack approached, but the opposite happened. Iranian military and intelligence leaders even gathered at the National Security Council office for a high-level meeting.

This was a fatal mistake for Iran. In June 2025, during the "Midnight Hammer Operation" against Iran, Israel did not target Khamenei with a decapitation strike. The reason was that US President Donald Trump feared it would make the situation in the Middle East too tense. However, Khamenei disappeared afterwards, and the US and Israel believed they had missed the opportunity. Therefore, the plan for this attack immediately included the need to eliminate Khamenei and other leaders. In this context, Khamenei was like a fish on a chopping block, appearing at a location controlled by Israeli intelligence.

The reason why Israel and the US were able to capture this moment was due to efforts made over more than two decades. According to a report by The Guardian, Mossad has been recruiting local intelligence agents inside Iran for about 20 years. Especially from many years ago, Mossad and the CIA have established detailed files on where Khamenei lives, who he meets, how he communicates with the outside world, and where he hides when attacked. An anonymous former CIA official told The Guardian, "When tracking high-level targets, you need to piece together all kinds of information fragments, such as how to pass food and how to deal with garbage."

After collecting such intelligence, Israel launched a precise strike. The head of the Israeli Defense Forces sent a text message to Israeli Air Force pilots saying, "You have been authorized to strike the target, we are creating history," and "I trust you, good luck to all of us."

According to CNN, Israeli fighter jets equipped with precision-guided munitions and long-range missiles simultaneously attacked three locations where Khamenei and Iranian senior officials were gathered. According to a report by The Guardian citing Israeli military sources, Khamenei and seven Iranian officials were killed within 60 seconds after the attack began.

After Khamenei's death, Israeli F-15 fighters launched ballistic missiles called "Blackbird" against the surface-to-air missile batteries defending Tehran. The advantage of Blackbird is that it can strike without entering the range of Iranian surface-to-air missiles. After the Iranian air defense network was penetrated, Israel deployed approximately 200 aircraft to western and central Iran to destroy as many Iranian missiles as possible. NYT reported that "about 30 minutes after Israel attacked the leadership, the United States also joined the hunting operation to attack eastern Iran."

CNN said, "This operation revealed how precise the intelligence network that Israel and the US have built inside Iran is," and "how well-prepared the two countries are to act quickly once the opportunity arises." Oded Eyal, a former head of the counter-terrorism department at Mossad, told The Guardian, "One minute can change an entire region."

Source: Chosun Daily

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1858621262303241/

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