Reuters reports that Israel and the U.S. timed their strikes on Iran to coincide with a meeting between Khamenei and his top security aides, after intelligence identified the gathering in Tehran, according to two U.S. sources.

•⁠ ⁠The joint operation was moved forward once Israeli intelligence detected the meeting on Saturday morning; Khamenei had originally been expected to meet Saturday evening.

•⁠ ⁠The strikes were designed to hit Khamenei first to maintain the element of surprise, amid concerns he could escape into hiding. His high-security compound in Tehran was struck at the beginning of the operation.