The finer details and specifics of the success or failure of the recent Israel-Iran conflict will take some time to emerge, obfuscated by a bitter information war. However, what is undeniably and emphatically acknowledged is that Mossad has yet again proved its mettle. Mossad, combining technology with human operatives, both inside and outside Iran, conducting operations without any contest, has affirmed why it is the most feared and yet respected intelligence agency in the world.
BY LT GEN DP PANDEY(R) | FOR NEWS ANALYTICS
a 5 mins read.
As the missiles and bombs started striking unsuspecting targets, killing and assassinating top military commanders and nuclear scientists, disabling key air defence establishments and damaging the uranium enrichment and other nuclear facilities, the world and especially the Iranian establishment were in shock at the precision and specificity of the attacks. Mossad’s perfectionist approach to intelligence was again in evidence. Intelligence agencies of Israel had won the conflict even before it began. Iran was made merely a pawn in the chessboard laid out by Mossad.
PRECISION INTELLIGENCE STRIKES
As key intelligence emerged that Iran was a few months away from enriching enough uranium to produce more than nine bombs, Israel had to be worried. Iran had its strategic orientation, “death to Israel”, unchanged for more than 35 years. While Iran had a firm hold in the region as a key player through proxies such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis, and others, who bombed, kidnapped, killed, and assassinated Israelis and anyone else who was a threat through explosive devices, rockets and missiles or even direct targeting. Nuclear weapon with Iran would have been the ultimate game changer in the region, making it the hegemonistic power with leverage, that all countries solicited, in a predominantly Sunni world. However, Iranian nukes had only one proclaimed target, Israel.
Overstretched, committed and nearing exhaustion, Israel was focused on destroying Hamas and extricating as many hostages as possible, not many were believed to be alive after 20 months of captivity since 07 October 2023. Only a few were released alive, a large number came in body bags, and the condition of the rest was largely unknown or unconfirmed. Israel was not in a position to engage Iran militarily in a prolonged campaign, and the US administration was unwilling to intervene with force. Talks were not going anywhere, and the 60-day deadline given by the Trump administration was expiring on June 12, 2025.
AIR DEFENCE NEUTRALIZATION
Israel had no choice but to conduct a military strike across 1500 km that separated Iran along the land borders. As boots on ground was not feasible, the air strike options had to be exercised against an equally powerful military, Iran was ranked 16th while Israel was 15th in the world military power index, with efficient and resilient air defence systems and equally dangerous long range strike ballistic missiles and combat unmanned systems on the inventory. The strike, when executed, had to be sharp, swift and short, achieving all possible end states, the principal one being destroying or at least damaging the nuclear program.
Operation Rising Lion, or Am Kalavi, from start to end, was an intelligence-based, intelligence-supported supported and more importantly, intelligence-driven military strike by Israel, the only type in the history of warfare. For the Israeli intelligence, there were three vital targets. The principal target was the nuclear program, which included the uranium enrichment facilities, storage areas, laboratories and the human knowledge base, that is, the lead scientists responsible for the program.
However, to facilitate the military operation of neutralising the nuclear program, there were three targets for intelligence acquisition and eventual targeting. The most critical target was the air defence systems, including radars, launchers, SAM storage areas, fixed wing assets and the Command & Control centres. These had to be destroyed or disabled through direct action by Special Forces, weapons or cyber-attacks to allow the Israeli Air Force to operate with impunity in the Iranian airspace.
The next important targets were the deadly ballistic missile systems and long-range drones of Iran. These would have been the only major threat to Israel, military and civilians, at 1500 km. The centre of gravity of Israel was its population, and the Iranians were known to target it in a conflict scenario. While destruction of the ballistic missiles, launchers and the command control centres was impossible, a degradation of capacity would have given an edge and survivability to Israel in the long-distance aerial duels and its air defence systems to take on the expected but reduced onslaught.
Mossad’s integration of cyber, human, and technological assets enabled Israel to dismantle Iran’s defences, conduct targeted assassinations, and neutralise critical threats before retaliation.
TARGETED LEADERSHIP ELIMINATIONS
The last and the most important targets for intelligence were identifying, monitoring the movements and providing the pinpoint locations of the critical commanders, military and intelligence, who were required to be eliminated or neutralised to delay the response from Iran and create chaos for a period of time till the primary mission was completed.
The Israeli intelligence operation, as analysed, during the brief 12-day conflict with Iran in June 2025, had three unique, distinct, disparate yet overlapping components. The range and specialisation of tasking undertaken has never been undertaken by any other country since the Second World War. The first but obvious was intelligence data harvesting, confirming, authenticating and verifying over time for assurance of frequency and consistency. The movement pattern of the commanders, critical ones in an authoritarian regime, is highly secretive, inconsistent, and ever-changing. However, this extremely frequent movement is yet to be patterned.
Similarly, the air defence and ballistic missile systems also have regular changes in locations, changes in frequency of radio activity and other defensive measures to hide or deceive regarding their activity or presence. The intelligence gathering and confirmation were conducted through digital signatures and human resources on the ground. These actions were conducted prior to the strikes over months and years of investment of time and resources for an eventuality as had emerged.
The next task was the logistical support within the Iranian territory. It is believed that ballistic missile systems were inserted, and a covert base for the kamikaze drones was constructed near the capital city of Tehran. And then the Special Forces teams were infiltrated close to the commencement of Operation Rising Lion. These efforts allowed the launching of the missiles and kamikaze drones from the proximity of the targets, ensuring assured destruction and disablement. While the bombing or missile attacks on the nuclear facilities could be carried out by the Israeli Air Force but the real-time neutralisation of Air Defence systems and the military commanders required a short flight time and assured kills without raising attention.
CYBER-KINETIC INTEGRATION
The third component of the intelligence operation was direct kinetic operations. This is a matter of exception and not routine for intelligence operatives. Gathering information is par for the course, carrying out certain specialised assassinations or destruction of a target is also conducted by intelligence assets who prefer to operate alone or in very small teams. But in the instant operation, Mossad was complementing or rather conducting, strikes ahead of the main effort on a large scale. Degrading the air defence systems by an intelligence operation, before the arrival of the Israeli Air Force, so that the Iranian airspace was owned, has been unheard of before.
Combined with coordinated cyber-attacks, the physical strikes from within the territory of Iran were a marvel execution of an impossible plan. After all, the Iranian military was a professional and modern force to reckon with, both in terms of technology and committed personnel. As per inputs, the launch of kamikaze drones and the loitering missions was remotely controlled and disabled the air defence systems, paving the way for the Israeli Air Force operations with impunity. The air defence of Iran remained off and degraded till the last day of the operation. Seven B2 spirit bombers of USA that flew all across the Atlantic from their base in Missouri were able to conduct operations dropping GBU 5 MOP (Massive Ordinance Penetrator) on the nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan without being challenged over the 25 minutes they were in the Iranian air space on 22 June 2025, even after 10 days of the commencement of the conflict.
The backbone of the Iranian response, the ballistic missiles that could have caused critical and severe damage to the Israeli targets, military and civilian, traversing 1500 kms, were taken out of action before they could even participate in the Iranian retaliation. The actions taken by the intelligence assets for targeting the airfields and air assets kept the Iranian air force incapable of providing even a nominal fight.
The assassination of the most important commanders like the Commander in Chief of the Iranian military, the Commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the head of the IRGC’s Aerospace Forces, among others, maimed the entire decision-making set-up. The critical time to launch a response was lost due to the absence of these key commanders.
Operation Rising Lion showcases the unprecedented role of intelligence in modern warfare, moving beyond surveillance to direct kinetic action, logistical support, and real-time battlefield domination.
LESSONS FOR INDIA
The intelligence operation conducted by the Israelis is instructive and was the reason why the conflict lasted only for a few days, wherein all mission objectives of Israel were achieved, and its efforts were met with minimal response from a paralysed Iranian force. The intelligence operations in the overwhelming success of Operation Rising Lion bring about significant lessons for the Indian security establishment. India is surrounded by a similar volatile and violent neighbourhood to that of Israel. The only difference is that the threat of anti-national forces is substantial within the country as compared to Israel.
While the intelligence apparatus must prepare to thwart threats from within, it must scale up its capabilities during non-conflict periods to develop assets within target countries. It is also important that technology can be suitably leveraged for data harvesting, information denial, and targeting through both kinetic and non-kinetic assets in times of conflict.
(Lt Gen DP Pandey (R), Former Corps Commander, Chinar Corps, DG Territorial Army, Director of Military Intelligence, Foreign Division and the Commandant of the Army War College. The views expressed are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The News Analytics Herald.)
Major Highlights
- Operation Rising Lion was an intelligence-led strike blending cyber, human, and kinetic tactics for swift success.
- Israeli intelligence crippled Iranian air defences, allowing Israeli and U.S. forces unopposed nuclear strikes.
- Coordinated assassinations of Iran’s top commanders disrupted decision-making and delayed effective retaliation.
- Covert logistics and embedded assets within Iran enabled precise strikes and effective disruption operations.
- India should enhance its intelligence capacity using tech and human assets for proactive defence abroad.
