Israel tracked the movements of Ali Larijani, the secretary-general of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) and Iran's security chief, and Gholamreza Soleimani, the head of the Basij militia, then struck their hideouts and killed them, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 17th local time.
According to the WSJ, Israeli intelligence determined in the early morning that Larijani was gathered with other officials at a hideout on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran's capital, and killed him in a missile strike. In the case of Soleimani, who also died the same day, Israel reportedly received tips from ordinary Iranians that he was hiding with subordinates in a tent in a forested area of Tehran, and carried out the attack based on that information.
The operation became possible as the war entered its third week and Israel secured increasing amounts of information on its targets. The WSJ said, "Leaders in Israel and the United States have said since the outset of the war that war with Iran would create conditions for the Iranian people to overthrow the regime," adding, "The operation that day marked an important milestone in achieving that goal."
Israel continues its attacks by tracking the movements of Iran's security forces, including command headquarters, rallying points, and hideouts. On the 28th of last month, former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also died in U.S. and Israeli airstrikes; this, too, was reportedly achieved after Israel analyzed the movements of Iran's leadership through vast human intelligence and advanced cyber capabilities. The WSJ noted that the combination of Israel's advanced technology and an intelligence network embedded in Iranian society is threatening Iran's deeply rooted regime.
Following Khamenei, the successive elimination of Iranian leaders such as Larijani and Soleimani has deepened turmoil in Iranian society. The Iranian government has launched a sweeping crackdown to block signs of an internal anti-government uprising. In major cities including the capital, Tehran, armed security personnel on motorcycles are stepping up patrols. Iranian state TV also reported that since the outbreak of war, at least 500 people have been arrested on charges of sharing information with international media or enemy forces to help identify targets.