Israel threatened Iran's leadership on first day of strikes: Top Iranian advisor

Israel sent threatening messages to several Iranian political, military and security officials on the first day of its attack on Iran, a top advisor to Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Sunday.

Ali Larijani made the announcement during an appearance on state television.

Noting that Israel's goal was not solely to target political and military structures but also to directly threaten Iran's leadership to swiftly dismantle the state structure, Larijani said “the enemy calculated that it could quickly dismantle the state structure by targeting senior Iranian officials during a leadership meeting. The next step was to threaten the leader of the Islamic revolution directly.”

Larijani said that Israel and the US realized that their assumption that the Iranian people would abandon their government in the midst of conflict was wrong, adding “the strong unity and resistance of the people forced Israel to reconsider its goals.”

According to Larijani, when it became clear on June 21 that Israel would not be able to achieve its goals, third-party mediators stepped in.

He noted that besides the threatening messages sent to some top officials, he received a message saying he had 12 hours to leave Tehran.

“I also received a message saying I had 12 hours to leave Tehran. Otherwise, they said I would share the same fate as the late commander Gholam Ali Rashid and Chief of General Staff Mohammad Bagheri, but I gave them a response befitting someone like (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu.”

Larijani emphasized that the most important factors that changed the course of the war were Iran's advanced missile capabilities and the unwavering support of the people.

“Netanyahu's entire effort was focused on forcing the Iranian people to surrender. However, the clarification of Iran's missile power was decisive in the course of the war,” he added.

Regarding the attack by Iran on Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest US military base in the Middle East and a major regional military hub for American forces, Larijani said that contrary to what US officials had stated, six missiles, each carrying a 400-kilogram warhead, had hit the base, adding: “We know what happened, but let (US President Donald) Trump be happy with his fantasies.”