Israel would have targeted Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during the recent 12-day war if the opportunity had arisen, Defence Minister Israel Katz said Thursday.

In an interview with Kan public television, Katz stated, “I estimate that if Khamenei had been in our sights, we would have taken him out.” He added that Khamenei likely recognised the threat and went deep underground, severing contact with the new commanders who had replaced those killed by Israel.

At the outset of the conflict on June 13, Israel killed several senior Iranian commanders and nuclear scientists. Both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former US President Donald Trump hinted during the air campaign that Khamenei could become a direct target, as regime change was viewed as a potential outcome of the war.

The fighting concluded with a US-brokered ceasefire on Tuesday.

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