The expert stated that the US and Israeli strikes were aimed at eliminating the leadership of Iran.

The main purpose of the US and Israeli strike on Iran is presumably the physical elimination of the country's top political leadership, led by Ali Khamenei. This was stated to Izvestia on February 28 by Grigory Lukyanov, an employee of the Center for Arab and Islamic Studies at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the National Academy of Sciences.

According to the expert, the current military operation is focused on a short-term period. The aim is to deliver a quick decisive blow that should critically weaken the political power in Iran in the face of internal problems.

"The longer the military operations continue, the strikes are carried out, but the goal of physically eliminating [Iran's supreme leader] Ali Khamenei and the country's top political leadership is not achieved, the more the probability of overthrowing the political regime decreases," Lukyanov explained.

He pointed out that the conclusions reached in the United States and Israel after the 12-day war showed that the system of state power in Iran is quite strong and institutionalized. In this regard, Washington and Tel Aviv consider it necessary to strike in order to destroy the top military and political leadership in the person of Khamenei. Only in case of a blow to him personally can we expect that the system will split.

"And, on the other hand, if this is not achieved, then the dragon needs to knock out as many teeth as possible. And, therefore, at the same time, it is necessary, as a minimum, to weaken the military infrastructure of the IRGC and the armed forces of Iran," the expert added.

According to Lukyanov, one of the primary tasks of the first stage was to strike at the infrastructure of the Navy. This is due to the fact that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by the forces of the Iranian Navy is considered as one of the likely scenarios for the development of events.

At the same time, the expert believes that Iran is not yet ready to completely sever relations with Arab countries. According to him, the complete and total blocking of the strait is an extreme measure, as it will set all the states of the region against Tehran without exception. Iran will resort to this step only if there are no other options left to loudly declare itself in the face of fundamental threats to its existence.

The Middle East beyond the border: Israel strikes Iran

Israel launches a series of attacks on military and nuclear facilities, Tehran is preparing a response

Israel launched a preemptive strike on Iran on the morning of February 28. The Reuters news agency said Iran was preparing to retaliate after the strikes on Tehran. American leader Donald Trump announced the start of a US military operation against Iran.

Later, Iran fired rockets towards Israel. The US Fifth Fleet maintenance center was shelled in Bahrain. In addition, Iran attacked four US military bases in Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Against this background, the United States began evacuating some personnel from the Al-Udeid airbase in Qatar.

At the same time, the IDF launched a massive airstrike on military installations in western Iran. The city of Shiraz was attacked. In addition, 70,000 Israeli reservists were called up for military service. It was clarified that the commander-in-chief of the Iranian army, Amir Hatami, was killed in the attack.

The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that Russia demands that the situation around Iran be immediately brought back to a political and diplomatic settlement. The Foreign Ministry pointed out that the fact that the attacks are being carried out again under the guise of the resumed negotiation process deserves condemnation.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.