Inside Israel’s secret war in Iran: Mossad commandos, hidden drones and the strike that stunned Tehran

Israel’s overnight strike connected Iran was not lone 1 of the astir ambitious aerial campaigns successful caller history, it was the effect of years of covert planning, surveillance and infiltration by Israeli intelligence. 

While dozens of combatant jets bombed atomic and subject targets crossed Iran aboriginal Friday morning, the groundwork had agelong been laid by Mossad agents moving successful lockstep with the Israeli military.

Code-named "Am Kelavi" (Rising Lion), the preemptive cognition was the merchandise of unprecedented coordination betwixt the Israeli aerial force, the Military Intelligence Directorate, Mossad and the country’s defence industries. For years, they worked "shoulder to shoulder" to stitchery the quality files needed to destruct Iran’s astir delicate subject and atomic assets.

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A elder Israeli information authoritative told Fox News Digital, "The Mossad worked with a immense fig of people—a wide of agents heavy wrong Iran, operating astatine the highest level of penetration imaginable. Some of these agents were retrained arsenic commando fighters to transportation retired mission-critical operations."

That enactment culminated successful what the authoritative described arsenic a three-layered strike. "We eliminated immense areas of Iran’s surface-to-surface and surface-to-air rocket infrastructure, a monolithic fig of elder scientists, and ample portions of their aerial defence systems."

"We established a drone basal wrong Iran, and astatine zero hour, Mossad operatives retrieved them from hiding spots. We placed precision missiles connected galore vehicles and embedded further missiles passim the country, hidden wrong rocks. We activated this full array successful precise coordination with the Israeli aerial force."

Israeli jets launched simultaneous strikes connected dozens of sites, including Iran’s superior uranium enrichment installation astatine Natanz. Located 1,500 kilometers from Israeli territory, Natanz had agelong been a captious portion of Iran’s atomic program. Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, the Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson, described it arsenic an underground compound containing multi-level centrifuge halls and electrical infrastructure.

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"We inflicted important harm connected this site," Defrin said. "This installation was utilized by the IRGC to beforehand Iran’s task for acquiring atomic weapons."

Avner Golov, vice president of the Mind Israel deliberation tank, told Fox News Digital, "The biggest occurrence was hitting the Natanz installation and neutralizing Iran’s archetypal question of retaliation—the automatic response. 

Smoke rises aft an detonation successful Tehran, Iran, connected Friday, June 13, 2025. Israel attacked Iran's superior aboriginal Friday with explosions booming crossed Tehran. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

"We took retired their opening move—the ballistic missiles that were meant to motorboat immediately, and the drones that were already connected the way. The information that scientists were eliminated—that’s the existent achievement."

However, acold beyond the airstrikes, Israeli sources revealed that a monolithic quality and sabotage run was unfolding successful parallel wrong Iran. A erstwhile elder Israeli authoritative told Fox News Digital, "There was enactment wrong Iran—an insane level of quality work.

"They located the full bid halfway of the Iranian Air Force. All the commanders were together, and they were taken retired successful existent time."

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People determination past a ample banner featuring portraits of slain leaders from Iran-aligned equipped groups, including Hamas person Yahya Sinwar, Hezbollah person Hassan Nasrallah and Iranian Commander Qasem Soleimani, successful cardinal Tehran, Iran, connected May 1, 2025. (Photo by MOHAMMADALI NAJIB/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

According to the aforesaid official, Iran’s subject had gathered its apical aerial unit brass successful 1 installation arsenic portion of a publicized drill meant to task deterrence. Instead, it exposed them. "It was partially luck, but besides planned—the quality to spot them successful existent clip and onslaught with precision," helium said. "It’s a reminder of what happened successful Lebanon—taking retired contaminated enactment with surgical intelligence."

That cognition successful Lebanon, often referred to arsenic the "pagers" operation, saw Israel infiltrate and sabotage Hezbollah’s bid web utilizing Chinese-made radios embedded with explosives. The existent operation, Israeli experts say, was broader, deeper, and much strategically impactful.

"I deliberation this is truthful much much substantial," said Nadav Eyal, an Israeli writer and expert for "Yediot Ahronot" newspaper. "What was done present was overmuch much than the James Bond benignant of benignant of pagers operation. It’s much astir the infrastructure, quality needed to work devastating strikes connected subject installations, and the ingenuity of its quality services—electronic surveillance, things that it’s been processing for galore years now."

The Mossad’s infiltration run progressive the quiescent smuggling of blase weaponry into Iran, hidden wrong vehicles and embedded adjacent strategical targets. In cardinal Iran, precision-guided weapons were planted adjacent surface-to-air rocket batteries and launched connected command. Disguised vehicles were besides utilized to destruct Iran’s aerial defence systems astatine the infinitesimal of the strike. Meanwhile, explosive drones positioned adjacent Tehran were activated to destruct long-range rocket launchers astatine the Esfajabad base.

All of it took spot nether the ticker of Iranian quality and succeeded without detection.

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Israeli defence officials present accidental the ngo represents 1 of the astir palmy intelligence-military integrations successful the country’s history. If the Lebanon pagers stunned the world, the connection from this onslaught is adjacent clearer: obscurity is retired of reach.