Israel miscalculated the reaction of Iran to the targeted elimination of Quds Force commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi and other senior IRGC officials in Syria, The New York Times reported on Wednesday evening.

“The Israelis had badly miscalculated, thinking that Iran would not react strongly, according to multiple American officials who were involved in high-level discussions after the attack, a view shared by a senior Israeli official,” the report said.

Even after it became apparent that Iran would retaliate, neither Israel nor the US anticipated such a large-scale attack.

Israel only informed the US about the strike several moments before it occurred and Biden administration officials were angry that Israel didn’t consult with them beforehand.

The report quoted two Israeli officials as saying that the plans for the targeted elimination began two months beforehand and was approved by the war cabinet on March 22 a week before it took place.

The Times viewed internal Israeli defense records that listed the expected Iranian responses to the strike, including small-scale attacks by its proxies. No one predicted the large-scale response that was carried out.

“The question now is how does Israel respond in a way to prevent Iran from rewriting the rules of the game without provoking a new cycle of state-on-state violence,” said Dana Stroul of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)