Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, has revealed that the country’s military actively pursued a plan to assassinate Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during the height of the recent hostilities between the two nations. The attempt, he admitted, was abandoned after Khamenei retreated to an undisclosed underground bunker.
Speaking on Israel’s national media outlets, Katz said, “If he had been in our sights, we would have taken him out. We searched a lot.”
His remarks mark the first on-record acknowledgment by a senior Israeli official of a direct targeting attempt on the Iranian Supreme Leader. Until now, Israeli military operations had focused publicly on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. The new disclosure reveals a far more ambitious scope.
According to Katz, once intelligence indicated that Khamenei had cut off contact with his top commanders and had taken refuge deep underground, operational planners concluded that the assassination was no longer feasible. “Khamenei understood this, went very deep underground, broke off contact with the commanders… so in the end it wasn’t realistic,” he said.
The Israeli minister likened the situation to the final months of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli strike last year. “I wouldn’t recommend that he stay tranquil. He should learn from the late Nasrallah, who sat for a long time deep in the bunker. I recommend that he do the same thing,” Katz added.
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US President Donald Trump appeared to allude to the assassination plan during the conflict, writing on Truth Social, “We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there – We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now.”
Trump later clarified that removing Khamenei was not a current aim of US policy. Katz similarly stated that regime change was not the central objective. “The goal was to upset the regime in the middle of the operation and pressure the Iranians.”
The assassination plan was shelved before the ceasefire between Israel and Iran, which came into effect two days ago. Katz told Channel 13, “There’s a difference – before the ceasefire, after the ceasefire.”
In his first public appearance following the truce, Ayatollah Khamenei dismissed Western claims about the extent of damage inflicted on Iran’s nuclear capabilities. “The American president exaggerated events in unusual ways. It turned out that he needed this exaggeration,” he said.
“The Islamic Republic won, and in retaliation dealt a severe slap to the face of America,” Khamenei declared, adding that the nuclear programme had not suffered any significant setback.
According to Iranian health officials, at least 627 civilians were killed in the Israeli strikes. The Israeli government reported that 28 citizens were killed by Iran’s retaliatory missile barrage.
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