Israel says killing Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei ‘not off limits’ as strikes and missile attacks rage on

Iran-Israel conflict: Following the killing of Iran’s highest-ranking military officer, who was also the head of its elite Revolutionary Guards Corps and a former national security chief under Operation Rising Lion, Israeli officials on Satuday refused to rule out the possibility of assassinating Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as tensions between the two nations continue to simmer.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, a top Israeli official said the assassination of Iran’s top leader is “not off limits." The official told the outlet that the conflict “would only end either with Iran voluntarily dismantling its nuclear program or Israel making it impossible for Tehran to reconstitute it."

Channel 12 also quoted a senior Israeli political source saying the possibility cannot be ruled out. “Israel is not ruling out the possibility of eliminating Ali Khamenei, but it depends on many factors,” the source said.

Iran-Israel war

The Israeli official's message about Ayatollah Khamenei not being “off limits” comes after Iran and Israel exchanged missiles and airstrikes on Saturday, following a large-scale Israeli aerial assault the previous day. Israel stated that the strikes were aimed at halting Iran's alleged efforts to develop an atomic weapon.

Explosions lit the night skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and shook the buildings below, after Iran retaliated by launching waves of drones and ballistic missiles at Israel.

Majorly women, children killed, injured

On Sunday, Iran's health ministry said that the majority of those injured and killed in Israeli strikes over the past days are civilians, mainly women and children, reported Reuters.

‘Tehran will burn’

Adding to the latest string of warnings by Israel, the nation's defence minister had earlier warned that “Tehran will burn” if Iran continues launching missile attacks on Israel.

"If (Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali) Khamenei continues to fire missiles at the Israeli home front — Tehran will burn,” the Associated Press quoted Israel's defence minister Katz as saying.

Why are Israel and Iran at war?

Iran and Israel, decade-long enemies, have been locked in a shadow conflict that has shaped Middle Eastern geopolitics. Though both countries have avoided a full-blown war, the nations have frequently targeted each other through covert operations and, in Iran’s case, via proxy groups.

The escalation happened after Israel engaged in a war with Hamas, impounding Gaza and Palestinians in the process.