Israel Strikes Iran, Experts Question Nuclear Threat

Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a large-scale air campaign targeting military and nuclear sites across Iran, including assassinations of IRGC leaders and nuclear scientists, in an effort to halt Tehran’s progress toward nuclear weapons. The operation, enabled by extensive Israeli intelligence and years of Iranian neglect of conventional defenses, marks the most significant escalation between the two countries in decades. While Israeli officials framed the attack as a necessary preemptive move against an existential threat, some experts and former US intelligence officials questioned the immediacy of Iran's nuclear ambitions and pointed to broader political and strategic motives. Iran’s initial counter-strikes were repelled, and while the strikes are expected to delay Iran’s nuclear program, they will not eliminate it. The operation follows Israel’s improved strategic position after conflict in Gaza and aims to weaken Iran’s Axis of Resistance, but it also heightens risks of wider regional destabilization. Key Iranian political leaders were spared, signaling Israel's limited military objectives.