According to an investigation by The Wall Street Journal, Israel is conducting an intensive intelligence and military campaign aimed at the systematic elimination of key figures of the Iranian regime and its security structures. The goal of this long-term strategy, the report says, is to undermine Tehran's power from within and create conditions for its possible collapse. The campaign combines airstrikes, on-the-ground agent work and targeted killings of specific individuals.
Recent events have been landmark in this campaign: two senior Iranian officials were eliminated. Intelligence tracked and killed Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, with a missile strike after he appeared on the streets of Tehran. That same night an Israeli airstrike killed the commander of the Basij militia forces, Gholam Reza Soleimani. These operations showed that even public movements of leaders do not protect them when precise intelligence is available.
The scale of the military effort is vast: the outlet reports that Israel fired about 10,000 munitions at thousands of targets inside Iran. Among them were more than 2,200 objects linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Basij and internal security forces. The strategy is to draw security forces out of fortified headquarters into open spaces, then pursue them at temporary gathering points, including shelters under bridges and sports complexes.
One of the bloodiest operations, according to the documents, was the strike in the first week of the conflict on the Azadi Stadium and other complexes in Tehran, where intelligence said security forces had gathered. Hundreds of security personnel and soldiers were killed, dealing a serious blow to their ability to coordinate and regroup. That attack became an example of the "dismemberment" tactic, aimed at breaking command structures by striking their concentration points.
Alongside the military actions, a psychological campaign is underway. Agents of Israeli intelligence, Mossad, began making direct phone calls to Iranian military and security commanders, threatening them by name. In one of the intercepted conversations seen by the paper, an agent told an Iranian officer that his name was on a "blacklist" and urged him to "side with his people," threatening retribution otherwise. The officer begged for mercy in response, claiming he was not an enemy.
Despite the intense pressure, experts warn of the difficulty of achieving the ultimate goal. Analyst Farzin Nadimi of the Washington Institute notes that "toppling a government from the air is difficult, if not impossible," and cautions that a regime that survives the crisis may emerge "bolder and more dangerous." The Israeli side, however, hopes that economic collapse and popular anger will put Tehran on an "irreversible path to collapse," emphasizing that the decisive role in changing the situation remains with the Iranian people themselves.
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What is the structure and role of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council in making the country’s key decisions? — The Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) is the main coordinating body on defense, national security and foreign policy. Its membership includes the president, the speaker of parliament, the head of the judiciary, commanders of the IRGC and the regular army, and other senior officials. The council formulates strategic directions that are then approved by the Supreme Leader. It plays a key role in decisions on matters such as the nuclear program, regional policy and internal security.
What is the difference between the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Basij militia, and how do they interact within Iran’s security architecture? — The IRGC is an elite armed force responsible for defending the Islamic system, with its own land, naval, aerospace and intelligence branches. The Basij is a popular militia (volunteer forces) that is structurally part of the IRGC but focuses on internal tasks: ideological indoctrination, maintaining public order, social control and mass mobilization. Their interaction is hierarchical: the Basij operates as an auxiliary and reserve force under IRGC command, especially on issues of internal security and suppressing protests.
What is meant by "internal security forces" in the Iranian context, mentioned as targets, and are they a separate organization from the IRGC and the Basij? — The term "internal security forces" is not the name of a separate organization. It usually refers to the aggregate of structures responsible for internal security and suppression of dissent. It includes specialized IRGC units (for example, the Sarallah special forces), the Basij militia itself, as well as law enforcement bodies (police) and the Ministry of Intelligence. Thus, it is not a separate organization but rather a functional category that includes elements of the IRGC and Basij as well as other security agencies.
Full version: وول ستريت جورنال تكشف كواليس خطة الاغتيالات الإسرائيلية في إيران