In an op-ed published by The Wall Street Journal on Thursday, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett revealed that during his tenure in 2022, he directed Israel’s security forces to carry out two significant strikes against Iran. Bennett provided details of these strikes in his article, which advocated for Israel and the United States to work towards toppling the regime of the Iranian ayatollahs, describing it as “the source of endless war, terror and suffering throughout the world.”

In the first instance, Bennett authorized an attack on an Iranian UAV base in February 2022, following two unsuccessful drone attacks launched by Iran at Israel. The second operation, in March 2022, involved the assassination of a senior officer in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hassan Sayyad Khodaei, though Bennett did not mention him by name. This was in response to an Iranian attempt to target Israeli tourists in Turkey.

“I directed Israel’s security forces to make Tehran pay for its decision to sponsor terror. Enough impunity,” Bennett wrote. “After Iran launched two failed UAV attacks on Israel in February 2022, Israel destroyed a UAV base on Iranian soil. In March 2022, Iran’s terror unit attempted to kill Israeli tourists in Turkey and failed. Shortly thereafter, the commander of that very unit was assassinated in the center of Tehran.”

While Bennett had previously hinted at Israel’s involvement in Khodaei’s killing, he had not openly acknowledged it. Israel is often linked to various strikes in Iran, particularly against its nuclear program and senior figures, but rarely confirms such operations publicly.

“It turns out that Iran’s tyrants are softer than one might expect. They gleefully send others to die for them. But when they’re hit at home, suddenly they become timid,” Bennett wrote.

Bennett’s article further stressed the need for direct action against the Iranian regime, citing his own experiences as a soldier fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon. He highlighted the pattern of terror groups backed by Iran, such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah, engaging in attacks that destabilize the region and pose threats globally.

The former Prime Minister compared the situation to the Cold War, drawing parallels between Iran and the Soviet Union, and Israel and the United States. He suggested non-military efforts to weaken Iran, including empowering domestic opposition, ensuring internet access during riots, strengthening Iran’s enemies, and imposing sanctions.

The op-ed concluded with Bennett reiterating the importance of a focused effort to “bring down Iran’s evil regime.”

However, his revelations have sparked controversy among Israeli officials, with some criticizing him for potentially endangering the country by revealing classified information.

Likud MK Yuli Edelstein, chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, wrote regarding the op-ed: “There are those who mobilize for the sake of the state, and there are those who mobilize the state for their own sake.”

Bennett defended himself in a statement, stressing the importance of “mobilizing the US and other allies for the overarching goal… overthrowing the Iranian regime.”

“The issue with Iran is not the publication of moves we made against it that were already public knowledge, but that they hold us hostage through Hamas and Hezbollah, and even the Houthis,” he wrote. “The governments of the last decade talk and preach, but don’t exact a painful price from the leaders of Iran.”

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