Israel has reportedly been keeping tabs on the highest echelons of the Iranian government.
The New York Times has reported that Israel has been tracking high-ranking Iranian nuclear scientists since late 2022, leading to a series of events that culminated in a bombing of a bunker in Tehran on June 16, 2023.
The Iranian President, Masoud PΠ΅Π·eΡΠΊΠΈΠ°Π½, and other high-ranking officials were in attendance at the emergency meeting held in the bunker, which was located under a mountainside. The Iranian government discovered a "devastating gap" in their security system after the incident.
According to Israeli officials, the possibility of eliminating these scientists was considered in October 2021 but was delayed to avoid conflict with the administration of then-US President Joe Biden. The Israeli Air Force launched missile and bomb strikes on targets during the first week of June as a result of the tracking.
The Israeli military intelligence was able to track Iranian nuclear physicists and military commanders due to the careless use of mobile phones by their guards. This tracking resulted in the elimination of some Iranian officials during a 12-day war.
It was not previously reported that Israel had been tracking the guards of Iranian officials since late 2022. The meeting took place in a bunker without mobile phones for security reasons, but Israeli aircraft dropped bombs on the bunker's entry and exit doors on June 16. Despite the bombing, no leaders were killed.
After the conflict, Iran stepped up its search for agents it suspects of spying for Israel. The bodies of several guards were found killed by the explosions after the leaders emerged from the bunker. Saeed Karimi, a political analyst and professor at Tehran University, stated that the guards and drivers of high-ranking Iranian officials did not take security measures seriously, which allowed for their tracking.
In a separate development, the New York Times reported that Ruhollah Vadi, a nuclear scientist, was executed by Iran at the beginning of the month, and dozens of employees of military, intelligence, and government agencies were arrested or placed under house arrest.
As of now, no publicly verified information exists about a member of the Israeli military intelligence "decapitation team" being investigated and killed between October 2021 and June 2023. Israeli Intelligence continues to track the movements of key Iranian officials.
