The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday declassified parts of the order to go to war with Iran, listing among its objectives “to create long-term regional change.”
The document, signed by the head of the Operations Division in the IDF Operations Directorate, Brig. Gen. Israel Shomer, includes redactions that were not cleared for publication.
The text reads as follows:
- “___ and the internal situation in Iran ___ to leverage the achievements of the campaign thus far and to create long-term regional change. Therefore, and in accordance with the Chief of Staff’s directive, the IDF will transition from plan ___ to an order—the execution of an attack in Iran ___ and the reduction of the threat posed by Iran over time, to improve Israel’s strategic balance.”
The IDF and the U.S. military launched a joint preemptive attack on the Iran at 8:10 a.m. Israel Time on Feb. 28.
The offensive, which was planned over months and in coordination with the United States, resulted in the targeted killings of 40 top Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as they convened in secrecy in two locations in Tehran.
The Israeli military said on Sunday that the order of the attack followed “situational assessments, intelligence updates, approval of plans, multi-front readiness and inter-service coordination, until the conditions were met for issuing the order.”
