Operation Roaring Lion

Although it turns out Khamenei was killed likely in the war's opening moments by around 30 bombs around 8:00 a.m. Saturday morning, the more intense response only came later.

This year, Shabbat Zachor frames the chaos. The Torah demands that Jews recognize the pattern, protect the vulnerable, and refuse to forget who they are.

Trump claimed Iran was interested in restarting talks with Washington • Iranian cluster munitions seen in Israeli airspace • Six injured in Jerusalem, nine killed in Beit Shemesh in missile barrage

At first dismissed as weak and indecisive, Khamenei seemed an unlikely choice for supreme leader after the death of the charismatic Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

One woman that The Jerusalem Post reached out to explained that her brother was flying to Dubai but was made to land in Muscat, Oman, a country with no normalized relations with Israel.

"I can go long and take over the whole thing, or end it in two or three days and tell the Iranians: 'See you again in a few years if you start rebuilding," Trump said.

For decades, Western leaders dismissed Ali Khamenei’s language as rhetoric. His record shows ideology, not ambiguity, guided Iran’s strategy toward Israel, the US, and its own people.

As part of the preparations for the attack, which, as noted, had been scheduled long beforehand, US President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu held several conversations in recent weeks.

Footage from social media showed people lighting off fireworks from their balconies and calling out to each other from their apartments.

A US official, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said briefers described the operation to the president as a once-in-a-generation opportunity for change in the region.