Israeli Defense Minister Orders Military To Disrupt Iran With Intensive Attacks

JAKARTA - Israel's Defense Minister, Israel Katz said he had instructed Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to intensify attacks on regime targets in Tehran, in order to destabilize the Iranian regime.

"We must attack all regime symbols and their suppression mechanisms, such as Basij, as well as the regime's strength base, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps," Defense Minister Katz said during an assessment this morning with IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir and other high-ranking officers, quoted from The Times of Israel June 20.

Defense Minister Katz added that Israel must carry out "mass evacuations of residents from Tehran, to disrupt the regime and increase prevention in response to missile fire on Israel's front lines, while continuing to target facilities and scientists to thwart Iran's nuclear program, until all operational goals are fully achieved."

Israel launched airstrikes in the "Raising Lion" operation against targets of Iran's nuclear and military facilities on June 13 in the morning.

A number of senior generals and Iranian scientists were killed as a result of the attack. They consist of Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Commander Major General Hossien Salami, Khatam al-Anbia Headquarters Commander Major General Gholamali Rashid, IRGC Air Force Commander Brigadier General Amirali Hajizadeh, nuclear scientist and Azad Islam University President Mohammad-Mehdi Tehran as well as nuclear scientist and former head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Fereydoun Abbasi.

Yesterday, Chief Directorate of Military Intelligence Major General Shlomi Binder said Israel Defense Forces (IDF) should "bury" Iranian military commanders, "wherever they escape."

"Two days ago, we managed to attack one of their secret headquarters in the mountains. Several commanders managed to escape to another location. Twelve hours later, we attacked Chief of Staff Khatam al-Anbiya, who had fled to another mountainous area near Tehran," said Major General Binder.

"We have to hunt them wherever they escape. And you managed to turn Iran from a distant place, 1,500 kilometers away, into a military that we know how to deal with as if it were in our first circle. You have turned the third circle into the first circle," he explained.

Major General Binder said, in an attack that opened the IDF on Friday morning last week, 30 Iranian commanders were killed.

The IDF said eight top Iranian generals were killed that morning, saying the attack killed dozens of commanders and at least nine nuclear scientists.