It sounded like the plot of a Hollywood action movie. Years of secret planning. A network of spies laying the groundwork. And one shot to make it all work, with dire consequences if it didn’t.
This was how Israel pulled off a surprise attack on Iran on June 13, killing most of the Islamic Republic’s top military commanders and nine of its leading nuclear scientists, essentially all at once.
The plan — code-named Operation Narnia, referring to the fantastical world created by the author C.S. Lewis — was detailed for the first time in The Wall Street Journal.
Decades in the making
Israel-Iran war
Israel’s initial attack on Iran on June 13 killed nine top nuclear scientists, as well as military commanders. The long-planned, complex operation was code-named “Operation Narnia.”
Israel’s attack launched a 12-day war that saw hundreds of people killed in Iran and dozens in Israel. The countries agreed to a ceasefire after the United States dropped 14 massive “bunker-buster” bombs on two Iranian nuclear sites and fired Tomahawk missiles at another.
Iran’s foreign minister acknowledged the bombs caused “serious and significant” damage. President Donald Trump said the bombing “obliterated” the facilities, but U.S. intelligence agencies are still assessing whether Iran could resume or reconstitute its nuclear program.
According to the Journal, Israel’s initial attack required precision strikes that would kill top commanders and scientists almost simultaneously. Otherwise, many may have been able to disperse, making them harder to track.
The Journal said it based its account on interviews with 18 current and former U.S. and Israeli officials.
Israel began building a spy network inside Iran about 30 years ago, the Journal said, giving it the ability to track the movements of top military and civilian leaders. These operatives also set up secret drone bases, and the Mossad, Israel’s secret intelligence agency, smuggled in parts and weapons.
In November 2024, according to the Journal, 120 top Israeli intelligence and military officials convened to determine who they should target to cripple Iran’s nuclear program. On June 9, with Israeli officials concluding that Iran was on the verge of building a nuclear bomb, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the final go-ahead for a long-rumored assault that would begin four days later.
In the meantime, the Journal said, Israel — with help from the United States — engaged in a series of misdirections to throw the Iranians off guard.
Four ruses
Ruse No. 1: Netanyahu’s office announced that he would spend the weekend on holiday, ahead of his eldest son’s wedding on Monday, June 16. The idea, the Journal said, was to give the impression the prime minister was delaying his decision on a possible attack.
Ruse No. 2: Officials leaked a story to Israeli news outlets suggesting a rift between Netanyahu and Trump over striking Iran. Trump told reporters the United States and Iran were “fairly close to an agreement” on limiting the Iranian nuclear program.
Ruse No. 3: Israeli officials said publicly that no attack would take place before the next scheduled meeting between U.S. and Iranian negotiators, on Sunday, June 15.
Ruse No. 4: On social media, Trump wrote, “We remain committed to a Diplomatic Resolution to the Iran Nuclear Issue!” His post appeared as Israeli warplanes took off toward Iran.
‘Red Wedding’
With intelligence from its spies inside Iran, Israel was able to kill most of Iran’s top military commanders in a single location. Israeli officials later likened the attack to the bloody “Red Wedding” scene from the television program “Game of Thrones,” the Journal said.
At almost exactly the same time, Israeli planes launched missiles into the homes of nine of Iran’s nuclear scientists. All nine were killed.
Strikes on radar units, antiaircraft weapons and missile-launch sites followed. Within four hours, Israel believed it had struck a decisive blow to Iran’s defenses, as well as its nuclear program.
Rules of war
In a social media post, the Israeli Defense Forces explained why it killed the scientists, all of whom were civilians.
“ELIMINATED: 9 senior scientists and experts responsible for advancing the Iranian regime’s nuclear weapons program. All of the eliminated scientists and experts, eliminated based on intelligence, were key factors in the development of Iranian nuclear weapons. Their elimination is a significant blow to the regime’s ability to acquire weapons of mass destruction.”
In the days since the attack, military scholars have examined whether Israel was justified in those killings.
Michael N. Schmitt, a professor at the U.S. Military Academy’s Lieber Institute for Law and Warfare, noted in an article on June 18 that Israel had previously assassinated several Iranian nuclear scientists, some with car bombs and one with a robotic machine gun.
With some reservations, he concluded the simultaneous attacks this month did not violate the law of armed conflict codified in the Geneva Conventions.
“It is a thorny subject, even in the abstract,” Schmitt wrote.
“The law of armed conflict,” he added, “is often an uncomfortable environment for those seeking clarity or certainty.”
