Iranian Leader's Aide: Israel's Plan to Assassinate Ayatollah Khamenei, Pezeshkian Thwarted

“The enemy’s plan in this war was to target IRGC commanders and key national centers simultaneously. They believed they could pressure certain officials into abandoning the establishment through threats,” Larijani said in a televised interview on Sunday.

The senior advisor to Ayatollah Khamenei further revealed that during the war, Israel had tried to intimidate a range of Iranian officials, including politicians, military officers, and security personnel.

“On Friday, they contacted me and gave me 12 hours to leave Iran or get out of Tehran—or else, they said, I’d meet the same fate as martyrs like [Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Hossein] Baqeri and [commander of Iran’s top military headquarters Major General Gholam-Ali] Rashid. But I gave them the answer they deserved,” he added.

Referring to the US aggression against Iran’s nuclear program, Larijani dismissed the move as a “face-saving” gesture, saying, “let them be happy about that.”

Pointing to Iran’s retaliation against the US assault on Iranian soil, Larijani stated, “out of 14 Iranian missiles, 6 struck the American base [in Qatar] - and they hit hard, each carrying a 400kg warhead.”

US President Donald Trump, trying to save face, claimed “only one missile hit,” he continued, adding let him “enjoy his delusions.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, the senior official said that the US engaged in five rounds of indirect engotiations with Iran prior to the onslaught solely to mislead Tehran, while Israel carried out the strikes in complete coordination with Washington.

“The US used [indirect] talks as a capacity for deception and military raid,” he noted.

Zionist regime unleashed a war against Iran in mid-June, assassinating top-ranking military commanders, scientists, and dozens of civilians, including women and children.

The Zionist regime’s unprovoked aggression against Tehran and several other cities across the country, prompted a crushing and decisive response by the Iranian Armed Forces targeting strategic sites in Tel Aviv, Haifa and other parts of the occupied territories.

Iran’s Armed Forces launched a massive and unprecedented retaliation, firing hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones - in 22 waves - that overpowered Israeli air defenses and hit vital military, intelligence, industrial, energy, and research facilities throughout the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Iranian Health Ministry announced on Wednesday that a total of 627 people were martyred and 4,870 injured in the Israeli regime’s attacks.

Instead of condemning the Israeli terrorist act, the United States struck three Iranian nuclear facilities.

Tehran fired a salvo of missiles at the American air base in Qatar that serves as the forward headquarters for US Central Command (CENTCOM) in retaliation for raids on Iran’s peaceful nuclear installations. The Islamic Republic announced that the strategic base had sustained damage despite multiple heavy layers of protection.

The Iranian Armed Forces have also warned the US that any renewed onslaught against Iran would prompt Tehran to teach Washington a "historic lesson".

After 12 days, the Zionist regime was forced to declare a unilateral ceasefire in an accord proposed by Washington to prevent further blows from Iranian missiles and drones.