Israeli authorities hacked into Tehran’s traffic camera network to track the whereabouts of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s bodyguards before assassinating him, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. 86-year-old Khamenei, who had been ruling Iran since 1989, was killed in a combined military operation launched by the United States and Israel in the early hours of Saturday.
US President Donald Trump, while confirming Khamenei’s death, called him “one of the most evil people in history”.
According to the report, the cameras were part of the state’s surveillance apparatus, allowing authorities to identify and pursue protesters and regime opponents. But the Mossad, Israel’s spy agency, was able to co-opt the network for its own motive.
The report also claimed that Israel had gained access to the cameras years ago, and found that one particular camera was angled in such a way that it showed where members of Khamenei’s security team parked their cars.
Israeli intelligence gradually built files on the guards’ addresses, work schedules, and who they were assigned to protect.
How did Israel eventually target Khamenei?
On the day of the attack, Israel and the US also disrupted cellular service on Tehran’s Pasteur Street, where Khamenei was assassinated, in order to prevent those trying to reach the bodyguards and deliver possible warnings, according to the report.
“We knew Tehran like we know Jerusalem,” an Israeli intelligence official told the Financial Times. “And when you know [a place] as well as you know the street you grew up on, you notice a single thing that’s out of place,” the official said.
According to reports, Israel’s Mossad and the US Central Intelligence Agency tracked Khamenei’s location and identified his presence at a secured compound in the capital. Around 08:10 a.m. local time, precision airstrikes hit the site, severely damaging the complex and killing Khamenei along with several officials and members of his family who were present at the time.
Trump’s go-ahead order
According to reports, Trump gave the final “go-ahead” order on February 27, authorising the joint US-Israeli military campaign that ultimately killed Ali Khamenei. The decision came while Trump was aboard Air Force One flying to Texas. At around 3:38 p.m. EST, he approved the operation, codenamed ‘Operation Epic Fury’ after consulting senior advisers and reviewing intelligence assessments.
Israel used AI
Israeli authorities also used AI tools and algorithms it had developed to sort through data it was amassing on Iran’s leadership and their movements, according to an official who spoke with the British daily, which said the bulk of the work was performed by the IDF’s Unit 8200.
Israeli authorities also used AI tools and algorithms it had developed to sort through data it was amassing on Iran’s leadership and their movements, according to an official who spoke with the British daily, which said the bulk of the work was performed by the IDF’s Unit 8200.
The data mining operation allowed the military to track Khamenei to the Saturday meeting where he was fatally stuck. The CIA also had a human source who provided key intelligence, according to the sources. No further details were provided.