Israel has launched the largest military operation in its history against Iran, crushing its nuclear and ballistic infrastructure in a few hours and killing the military leadership into a “beheading campaign” that changes the terms of the game in the Middle East.

Just hours after he declared that Iran was “completely prepared” for any Israeli attack, the head of the revolution guards, Lieutenant General Hossein Salami, was killed in a plane blow.

The attack is part of a mass wave of Israeli airlines aimed at not only preventing the Iranian nuclear program but also the political and military paralysis of the Tehran regime, the Wall Street Journal said in an analysis.

It is an approach similar to that that Israel has implemented with disastrous efficiency against Hamas and Hezbollah, where secret businesses are rapidly turning into severe strikes with advanced weapons.

In the early hours, Israel said it was exterminated by top military executives, including leadership members of the Revolutionary and Air Force guards, attempting to cut supreme leader Ali Hameni from the defense hierarchy.

The Israeli army also said it caused serious damage to the Natanz nuclear plant, a key location for the production of tear material for the construction of a nuclear bomb, as well as anti -aircraft defense systems and parts of the huge ballistic gun. The attacks hit the whole country, including the expensive neighborhoods of northern Iran, where much of the Iranian elite resides. Israel also targeted Iranian nuclear scientists, as at least five of them were killed, according to state media.

In total, Israel launched five waves of raids with hundreds of warplanes in the early hours of Friday, and continued the attack in the afternoon. A senior Israeli official said the blows would continue in the next two weeks, in a campaign aimed at either forcing the regime to the negotiating table or to complete it because of the disasters he has suffered from the attacks.

“Beheading” against Iran’s leadership

Faced with an unprecedented wave of attacks, Iran warned Israel to “expect harsh punishment”, but failed to respond effectively. As Tehran announced, 100 drones against Israel were fired, which were overthrown on the way, with the help of Jordan.

However, on Friday, Iran launched its retaliation against Israel. Iranian ballistic missiles hit at least seven points around Tel Aviv on Friday night. Video from Tel Aviv records at least one large explosion on the ground by an obvious rocket hit and an apartment building wrapped in flames.

Explosions were also heard in Jerusalem as rockets crossed the sky, part of Iran’s reprisals campaign, after successive Israeli blows that destroyed the Iranian military leadership and hit critical nuclear facilities.

“This is not a symbolic blow,” said Mark Dubovic, head of the Think Tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “It is a beheading campaign targeting the Iranian nuclear center and the infrastructure of the administration.”

The targets far exceeded the classic nuclear bands and expanded to decision-making centers and key persons of theocratic leadership, including those who can order retaliation.

The Israeli Mosad Intelligence Service conducted businesses within Iran, including the search for leadership targets in Tehran, a man who knows businesses said on Friday. Mosad also introduced smuggled explosive drones and other guided weapons to Iran before the campaign, the man said. As the attacks began, Mosad’s forces on the ground used weapons to attack Iranian air defense and ballistic missile launchers, helping to open the passage to warplanes and alleviating Iran’s ability to react.

Among the high -ranking Iranian officers killed are the head of the Josein Salami revolution guards, the Chief of General Staff Mohammad Baggeri and General Golam Ali Rashid. The Israeli side reports that almost the entire leadership of the Air Force of the Guards, including its commander and drone Warfare chief, was exterminated, as they had gathered at an underground business center.

“It is important to emphasize that we are only at the beginning of what will probably evolve into a completely different episode from previous direct Israeli and Iran clashes,” warns Danny Sitrinovic, a senior Iran researcher at the Institute of National Security Studies. “This time, it seems to be a ‘stubborn campaign’, with deep and long -term consequences for both Iran’s future and the stability of the region.”

The attacks surprised the Iranian leadership and are reminiscent of the strategy followed by Israel in the fall against Hezbollah in Lebanon – the strongest militia supported by Iran. In a two -month campaign, Tel Aviv killed much of the Hezbollah arsenal, attacked bunkers leaders and decimated the organization’s management chain.

A similar military logic was also applied to the war against Hamas in Gaza, with Israel leaving few pre -war leaders of the organization.

“If you paralyze the decision -making process, you can achieve a lot. We saw this with Hezbollah, “said Yakov Amidror, a former Israeli national security adviser and current researcher at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (Jinsa) based in Washington.

The Israeli attack may not be able to prevent Tehran in the long run from the reconstruction of its nuclear program. However, it can delay it to such an extent that the threat is ultimately not timely. Amidror said that when Tel Aviv destroyed the Iraqi nuclear reactor in 1981, many said Baghdad would rebuild him, but that never happened.

Targeted extermination of leaders can also have a deep impact. Israel’s pounding was silenced for more than a year of Hezbollah attacks and forced the organization to accept a truce that provides for its positions in southern Lebanon, on the border with Israel.

Iran, however, is a clearly more complex and powerful opponent. While Hezbollah has quickly collapsed, Tehran is able to replenish losses and continue, with Israel still far from feeling safe that it has deeply affected the nuclear program.

Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, recognized the seriousness of the wounds early Friday morning, although the regime has already replaced the senior military commanders killed.

“Many commanders and scientists testified to hostile attacks,” Khamenei said. “Their successors and their colleagues will take care of their duties immediately, God will.”