Surprise Strike: "Operation Rising Lion" - Iran's Elite Fall Prey to Israel's Stealthy Strategy
- by Steffen Gassel
- 6 Min
Escalation in the situation may potentially extend threats towards European civilians from Iran. - "In escalating circumstances, Iran might consider Europe as potential targets"
NewsIsrael's covert assault, code-named "Operation Rising Lion," left Iran's higher-ups caught flat-footed. A key republic's top brass bit the dust in their very beds. Just how did this transpire?
For years, Israel had been warming up for an attack, the regime's leaders, blinded by their confidence, presumed US President Trump would never permit such action while negotiations were ongoing. This hunch proved false, and they were led astray by the Americans.
- Iran
- Israel
- Donald Trump
- USA
- Europe
- Nuclear Program
Enhanced context:
The operation's success hinged on Israel's meticulous, multiyear intelligence collection and sophisticated special forces, enabling them to deploy weaponized drones targeting critical air defense systems, and undetectably position precision weapons. The Mossad spy agency had ingeniously infiltrated Iran with weapons, setting up a base for the mission [1][2]. Israel capitalized on the following factors:
- Intelligence and Operational Preparation: Israel's pervasive intelligence, including real-time data on Iran's military and nuclear activities, provided a valuable opportunity for intervention [1][2].
- Degraded Iranian Defenses: Previous Israeli operations, such as the 2024 attack that crippled Tehran's air defense, made the path for further Israeli action smoother [2].
- Operational Window: Israel recognized Iran's vulnerability - a weakened proxy network (the "Axis of Resistance" led by Hezbollah) and updated intelligence regarding Iran advancing its nuclear weapons program [2].
- US Green Light: Contrary to assumptions that Trump would block such action, Israel proceeded with approval from him, purportedly based on intelligence of Iran reactivating its "weapons group" and hastening toward military enrichment [2].
- Strategic Surprise: The synergy of intelligence, special forces, and strategic positioning allowed Israel to bypass Iran's heightened alertness and years of threats, achieving a shocking degree of success despite escalating tensions and Iranian threats [1][2].
Europe's possible involvement, should the situation spin out of control, paints a picture of European leaders endorsing Israel's actions as self-defense. For instance, French President Macron and European Commission President von der Leyen affirmed "Israel's right to defend itself," while German authorities even preemptively criticized Iran for yet-to-occur attacks. Their stance suggests that if the conflict intensifies, Europe may offer Israel diplomatic support rather than acting as a restraint, possibly contributing to further instability and allegations of inconsistency [5].
In all, Israel's attack was enabled by extensive intelligence, prior operational gains against Iranian defenses, a perceived urgency due to Iran's nuclear advances, and crucially, a green light from the US president - despite the belief that Trump would serve as a restraint. Europe's response implies potential diplomatic backing for Israel should the crisis worsen [2][5].
- In light of the unexpected Israel Forces' operation named "Operation Rising Lion," the international community is questioning the effectiveness of the current cooperation policy between Iran and global political entities, particularly in relation to war-and-conflicts and general-news.
- The success of Israel's covert strike against Iran highlights the importance of a clear and unified cooperation policy, ensuring transparency and mutual trust, to prevent similar surprise attacks in the future.
