"Operation Rising Lion": Israel Launches Largest-Ever Preemptive Airstrikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites

In "Operation Rising Lion," Israeli Jets Hit Iran Targets—Natanz Enrichment, IRGC Missile Bases & Top Iranian Commanders Eliminated

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Introduction

In a strategic move under the cover of darkness before dawn, the Israeli Air Force attacked sites in Iran linked to its nuclear‑development program, air‑defense installations, and ballistic‑missile bases—effectively crippling Iran’s capacity for retaliation.

The primary targets were, unsurprisingly, the uranium‑enrichment facility at Natanz and bases belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Dubbed Operation Rising Lion, this marks Israel’s most extensive and ambitious action against Iran to date, surpassing even last year’s two exchanges of missiles and drones with Tehran.

For Iran, it represents the most significant attack on its territory since the Iran–Iraq War of 1980–1988. The Guardian

What Was Struck—and Who Made It Possible

Beyond the strategic facilities already mentioned, the strikes reportedly eliminated six scientists working on Iran’s nuclear program, the commander of the IRGC’s ground forces, the head of its armed forces, and the IRGC air force chief. According to unverified Iranian state reports, a total of 78 people were killed, including civilians and children.

These operations were allegedly facilitated by a network of Mossad operatives on Iranian soil, who pinpointed the locations of key military commanders and nuclear scientists. Reports claim Mossad agents even launched drones from within Iran as part of the assault. Wikipedia

Why Now?

The attack followed Iran’s Thursday announcement of plans to bring a third uranium‑enrichment facility online, just days after the UN nuclear watchdog condemned Tehran for failing to meet its nonproliferation commitments. Although Iran insists its nuclear efforts serve purely civilian and peaceful ends, Israel—and several Western nations, including the United States—have expressed deep concern and skepticism about Tehran’s intentions.

The worry centers on Iran stockpiling uranium enriched to 60%—well above levels needed for civil power and a relatively short technical leap from weapons‑grade enrichment. Israel believes Iran is clandestinely pursuing a so‑called “breakout capability,” the point of no return in developing a deliverable nuclear weapon.

Previous Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Program

Israel has for decades sought to slow or destroy Iran’s nuclear ambitions, and this is hardly the first attempt. In 2020, Brigadier General Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the military head of Iran’s nuclear effort, was killed by a remotely operated machine‑gun ambush on a lonely road near Tehran.

In 2009, U.S. and Israeli agents are believed to have introduced the Stuxnet computer virus into Iranian centrifuges—likely while the equipment was held at Dubai’s port—causing them to spin out of control and severely damaging the plant.

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Iran’s Response

Despite being caught off guard and weakened, Iran retaliated by launching rockets and drones against Israel throughout the day. So far, there are no confirmed casualties, although Israeli media report explosions and billowing smoke over Tel Aviv.

Social‑media footage shows projectiles, some launched from Beirut, streaking through the sky with yellow contrails, and rockets igniting above Jerusalem’s Old City.

The U.S. Position

President Donald Trump claimed the U.S. was aware of Israel’s plans and that Iran had reached out immediately after the strikes, though Tehran has not confirmed this. On June 13, Trump posted on social media:

“There has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end. Iran must make a deal before there is nothing left.” The Guardian

He reiterated that Iran still had an opportunity to agree to a nuclear accord, saying to Axios, “I couldn’t get them to agree in 60 days. They were close; they should have done it. Maybe now it will happen.” To Reuters, he added, “I tried to save Iran from humiliation and death.”

Conclusion

While Israel maintains that Iran has no right to a nuclear program—and that Tehran’s nuclear ambitions pose a threat to Israel and the world—plans to obliterate that program could backfire, sparking a regional nuclear arms race. Hard‑liners within Iran’s government and security services argue that, to avoid suffering Libya’s fate and to deter the U.S. and Israel, Iran must press ahead with its nuclear program and pursue an atomic bomb.

They point to North Korea, which, despite sanctions and global opposition, built a formidable arsenal of nuclear warheads and intercontinental ballistic missiles, deterring threats through sheer capability.

Should Iran succeed in building a bomb, a nuclear arms race in the Middle East would be all but inevitable, with Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and possibly Egypt deciding they, too, need atomic weapons. In short, prospects for regional stability look bleak.

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