For many decades, Israel was considered the master of deception. Its ability to pull off strikes in unthinkable ways has made Mossad a stuff of legends. Think of Adolf Eichmann’s abduction from Argentina in 1960, or ‘Operation Munich’ to punish the perpetrators of the Munich massacre during the 1972 Olympics.

In recent times, Israel’s ‘Operation Pager’ struck the world with its ingenuity and out-of-the-box thinking. Israel penetrated Hezbollah’s supply lines to weaponize pagers used by its cadre for communication. ‘In one stroke of the sword, the battle was won.’

Israel decapitated Hezbollah’s top leadership and cadre, breaking its chain of command, before beginning its air campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

However, earlier this month, Ukraine launched Operation ‘Spider Web,’ which, according to many analysts, was one of the greatest intelligence operations ever.

In the making for over 18 months, Ukraine smuggled 117 cheap drones into Russia, transported them close to strategic Russian airbases, and launched them with the help of its agents to destroy at least 20 Russian heavy bombers, some of them over 4,000 km away from the Ukrainian border.

For some time, it seemed that the Ukrainian intelligence agency SBU had even toppled Mossad in pulling off unthinkable operations.

However, within weeks, Mossad has made a comeback in style. Israel’s Operation ‘Rising Lion’ has Mossad written all over it, in its planning, use of deception to mislead, sabotage from within Iran, out-of-the-box thinking, and in its audacity to target Iran’s key military and nuclear sites.

How Israel Misled Iran

Israel employed a series of deception ploys to mislead Iran into believing that Tel Aviv was focused on the hostage crisis and was not considering a strike on its nuclear facilities.

According to Israeli defense sources, Tel Aviv deliberately labeled Thursday night’s security-cabinet meeting as a discussion on hostage negotiations in order to lull Tehran and green-light the pre-dawn strike inside Iran.

Israeli ministers were briefed in advance that the agenda would focus on the stalled talks for the release of Israelis held in Gaza. “The aim was to put Iran to sleep,” the source was quoted as saying by The Jerusalem Post.

Once inside the secure forum, the cabinet unanimously approved the military operation and every minister signed a strict non-disclosure agreement, known as a Shomer Sod (“guardian of the secret”) document.

Further, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office deliberately sent several false signals.

Netanyahu’s aides briefed reporters that he was planning a family holiday in the Galilee and would be attending his son Avner Netanyahu’s wedding on June 17, to mislead Iran into believing that no significant military action was imminent.

Furthermore, a statement was released indicating that Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Mossad Director David Barnea would fly to Washington on June 13 to meet US envoy Steve Witkoff for a “sixth round” of Iran-US nuclear talks in Oman. In reality, they stayed within Israel to plan and oversee Operation ‘Rising Lion’.

Israeli sources also claim that several fabricated stories about differences between Trump and Netanyahu were deliberately leaked to the media to give the impression that the US and Israel were not on the same page on the issue of striking Iranian nuclear sites.

Together, all these strategies created a smokescreen, giving Iran a false sense of complacency, which proved fatal for Tehran.

Mossad On The Ground

Mossad played a key role in this operation, from planning to executing the strike.

Israel and Mossad had prepared for years for this operation. Striking Iranian nuclear sites had long been on the agenda of Israel, even before the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas.

A security official told The Times of Israel that Mossad built a drone base inside Iran and smuggled precision weapons systems and commandos into the country.

The effort hinged on tight joint planning between the IDF and the Mossad intelligence agency, the source said.

These drone bases behind the enemy lines were utilized to neutralize Iranian air defense systems and surface-to-surface missiles just before Israel began its air campaign to target Iranian nuclear sites, ballistic missile depots, and the headquarters of Iranian armed forces.

“Mossad agents set up a drone base on Iranian soil near Tehran. The drones were activated overnight, striking surface-to-surface missile launchers aimed at Israel,” he said.

Mossad also released a video showing its commandos working within Iran to target its air defense systems and missile launchers.

Drones were launched and struck a ballistic missile site near Tehran, preventing Iran from launching an immediate response against Israel. At the same time, air defenses were destroyed, allowing the Israeli Air Force to carry out strikes against targets in Western Iran.

Additionally, vehicles carrying weapons systems were smuggled into Iran.

Mossad commandos operating inside Iran used these drones, precision missiles, and vehicle-mounted weapons systems to target Iranian AD systems and missile launchers.

These sabotage activities ensured that Israeli planes had the freedom to fly unchallenged over Iran.

The operations relied on “groundbreaking thinking, bold planning and surgical operation of advanced technologies, special forces and agents operating in the heart of Iran while totally evading the eyes of local intelligence,” the official told the Times of Israel.

Simultaneously, Israel launched air raids on Iran with 200 fighter jets, employing 330 munitions and targeting nearly 100 sites, including high-value targets such as the Natanz nuclear enrichment facility, Arak, Isfahan, Tehran, Kermanshah, and Tabriz nuclear facility.

The operation was a spectacular success for the IDF and Mossad. Nearly 100 high-value sites were targeted within Iran, employing 200 fighter jets and without the loss of a single aircraft.

Mossad has many legendary operations to its name. However, operation ‘Rising Lion’ was special even according to Mossad standards.