Israel decided in November to assassinate Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Defense Minister Israel Katz said, with the operation originally planned for mid-2026. The plan was approved in a small forum led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before being shared with the United States.

The strike was ultimately carried out earlier than planned, during the opening hours of a joint United States and Israeli air campaign. Khamenei was killed in an airstrike, marking the first time a country's top ruler has been assassinated in such an attack.

The air campaign has triggered a widening regional conflict, with Iranian attacks targeting Israel, Gulf states and Iraq, and Israeli strikes hitting Iran's ally Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel says its objective is to remove what it considers an existential threat from Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and to pursue regime change, while Iran's leadership has shown no sign of stepping down.