1. The Israel-Iran war: The first day. We are now about 15 hours after Israel launched what it labels a *preventive strike* against the Islamic Republic of Iran - targeting its nuclear facilities and ballistic missile sites. Here’s a short recap of what’s happened - and what
2. Now to the war. At the beginning of 2024, while Israel was still fighting the beginning of the war in Gaza, it began receiving what security officials described as troubling signals: Iran was advancing in what’s known as the *weapons group* -the part of its nuclear program
3. The Iranians were very encouraged by their latest missile attack on Israel in later October 2024, and they thought it proved that Israel's Arrow and other defenses have limited capacity to hold off a major barrage. Considering how small Israel is, definitely compared to Iran,
4. Another development during the war: Israel obtained, say senior officials, intelligence material revealing a joint plan by Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iranian elements - a plan that wasn’t just rhetoric, but described in detail the actual destruction of the State of Israel. I have
5. So Israel had to develop a plan that would maximize its air force's capabilities- prioritizing targets, using every aircraft efficiently, and getting the most out of its limited resources and implementing some new ideas. But even before that – it needed to prioritize, and try
6. Planning is one thing. Executing is something else entirely. A strike like this requires American coordination—over Middle East airspace, over shared intelligence, over ammunition supply chains. And crucially: what happens if and when Iran retaliates. These conversations
7. That’s something Hassan Nasrallah, Yahya Sinwar, and likely even Iran’s Supreme Leader failed to grasp: Something fundamental changed in Israel after October 7th. There is now zero tolerance-among both the public and the leadership- for regimes, leaders, or terrorist
8. Ahead of the strike, Israel employed a sophisticated psychological deception campaign aimed at the Iranian leadership. With U.S. assistance, they planted the idea that nothing could happen before the next and supposedly crucial round of talks in Oman - between U.S. envoy
9. The Mossad also played a role. While not as central as the Air Force or Military Intelligence, it maintained a drone base inside Iran, flying UAVs during the operation. In addition, it deployed equipment that targeted and destroyed anti-aircraft radar systems. Together these
10. Now comes the strategic phase. It’s obvious that the U.S. and Israel are playing **good cop, bad cop** with Iran. Israel strikes. Meanwhile, President Trump says, “I’m ready to sign a deal.” It’s the same model Israel proposed regarding Hezbollah: The U.S. pushed for a deal