October 19, 2026
Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz revealed extensive details of the military operations carried out by Israel and the United States against Iran, confirming the use of about 36,000 bombs, with explosive warheads weighing a ton each, to target sites inside Iranian territory with high precision.
Katz announced, in prominent statements, that Israel was able to assassinate the late Iranian leader Ali Khamenei, stressing at the same time that the Iranian nuclear program had been completely destroyed during an operation called “Rising Lion,” while another operation called “Lion’s Roar” was carried out in joint cooperation with the United States, on targets located about two thousand kilometers away from Israel.
In comparing historical and security milestones, Katz touched on the October 1973 war – known in Israel as the “Yom Kippur War” – considering that the failure at that time was purely political, and explaining that the political leadership was aware of the anticipated attack but refrained from taking deterrent measures or launching pre-emptive strikes against Egypt and Syria for fear of the international community’s reaction.
In contrast, Katz praised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision, which he described as “firm and dramatic,” to launch preemptive strikes against Iran with the support of the Israeli leadership, stressing that this approach is the culmination of a new military doctrine based on initiative and directing strikes when danger is sensed, to avoid repeating what he considered the mistakes of the past.
