Dim Amor

In an unprecedented military operation, conducted on June 22, 2025, in cooperation between Israel and the United States, three central nuclear facilities in Iran were attacked, as part of Operation "Am Klavya" ("Like a Lion") led by Israel. Among the facilities attacked are Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan – which constitute the core of Iran's nuclear program.

According to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's announcement on X, the operation (22.06) was carried out "in full coordination between myself and President Trump, and in full operational coordination between the IDF and the United States Army". Netanyahu emphasized that the American attack continued "with even greater force and tremendous power" the previous Israeli actions against Iran's nuclear program.

The war between Israel and Iran marks a dramatic turning point in the balance of power in the Middle East. Iran – a country numbering over one hundred million inhabitants – is now in an unprecedented position of strategic weakness, facing Israel which numbers only about nine million citizens. This, following a series of extensive Israeli actions, which reached their peak in the American attack on Iran's nuclear facilities.

Until the United States joined the operation, Israel acted alone against Iran, carrying out precise strikes toward strategic targets throughout the country. The actions included destruction of military installations, missile launch infrastructure and additional targets – including opening Iranian airspace – and all executed by Israeli forces alone, without any external assistance.

The United States' joining the operation brings with it enormous military capabilities opposite to the Iranian regime's threats. While Tehran had threatened for years to destroy Israel and developed nuclear capabilities for that purpose, the new reality presents a completely opposite picture – Iran remains without nuclear capabilities and in a state of absolute strategic weakness.

According to Netanyahu's words, immediately after completing the operation, President Trump called him for a "very warm, very moving" conversation, in which Trump congratulated Netanyahu, the IDF and the Israeli people, and in return Netanyahu congratulated the president, the American pilots and the American people.

The operation exposes the enormous gap between Iranian propaganda and military reality. Years of threats about advanced military power and sophisticated technologies proved baseless against Israeli and American operational capabilities. The Iranian regime, which presented itself as a threatening regional power, finds itself now "on its knees" without the nuclear capabilities that were the backbone of its deterrence strategy.

The strategic alliance between Israel and the United States is expressed not only in military cooperation, but also in a clear message sent to other powers in the region and the world. This demonstration of joint power constitutes a departure from the Middle Eastern context and directly touches global power relations, especially vis-à-vis Russia, which apparently faces a demonstration of American capabilities that may be relevant for it as well.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will enter history as the most courageous man, who decided to launch a daring military operation against Iran. Many experts believe that no other person would have been capable of displaying such courage. It appears that the joint action also marks a change in American strategy in the Middle East, under Donald Trump's second presidency. Trump's choice to forcefully join the Israeli operation and personally lead the attack on the nuclear facilities testifies to resolute commitment to military action against regional nuclear threats.

Iran's nuclear program, developed over more than a decade and a half with investment of billions of dollars and enormous resources, was destroyed during operations that lasted several months and especially in the decisive attack of June 22. The central facilities in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan, which were the heart of the program, were completely destroyed and with them Iran's ability to develop nuclear weapons in the foreseeable future was effectively erased.

The consequences of the operation go beyond the immediate security context and touch the future of the entire Middle East. Iran, which for decades was the factor destabilizing regional stability and financing terror networks throughout the region, finds itself in a state of weakness not seen for decades.

The regime in Tehran will now have to deal with a new reality in which it has lost its main deterrent weapon against Israel. Iran's conventional military capabilities, as proven during recent months, are significantly lower than the image the regime sought to promote, and they do not provide an answer to the joint force of Israel and the United States.

Operation "Am Klavya" will be remembered in the pages of military history as an exceptional example of operational achievement. An army operating with professionalism and efficiency is capable of destroying bases, missiles and additional targets of a much larger army. Iran, although a massive country in its dimensions, suffers from notable technological weakness. The ability to carry out such a complex operation, with an impressive level of precision, testifies to perfect coordination, sharp intelligence and advanced technological equipment of the IDF.

As Prime Minister Netanyahu summarized in his announcement: "We stand together, we fight together, and with God's help – we win together". The operation, according to him, fulfills the promise to the people of Israel about destroying Iran's nuclear facilities and opens a new chapter in the power relations in the Middle East.

P.S.

It is worth noting that the date of carrying out the operation bears special historical significance: on June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany opened war against the Soviet Union. It seems that the choice of date is not coincidental, and it may be interpreted as an intentional message to Russia's president, Vladimir Putin – a message demonstrating the military might of the United States and the strength of the strategic alliance at whose head it stands.

Graphics: Maakav