According to the Wall Street Journal, Israeli and U.S. military intelligence agencies had been waiting a long time for a rare opportunity in which senior Iranian political and military leaders would hold a meeting where they could all be killed at once. That opportunity, the report states, came on Saturday morning - when, according to Israeli sources, intelligence officers identified not just one meeting, but three - including one with Khamenei. According to the report, the moment was so unique that it was decided to strike in broad daylight - and Israeli aircraft dropped 30 bombs on Khamenei's residence, leaving it burned and shattered.

