Israel plots strikes on Iran ‘to topple regime’
Israel has been consulting the US on its retaliation for the salvo of nearly 200 Iranian missiles launched against it this month, narrowing down targets to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its volunteer paramilitary force. There is a third more indirect goal: encouraging regime change.
Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, hinted as much in a video statement, billed as an address to the Iranian people, several days before Iran’s missile attack. The speech in English was perhaps aimed at western countries and the Iranian opposition, which is based abroad, critics said.
“Don’t let a small group of fanatic theocrats crush your hopes and your dreams … The people of Iran should know: Israel stands with you,” Netanyahu declared. “When Iran is finally free — and that moment will come a lot sooner than people think — everything will be different.”
