Israel hacked Tehran cameras before Khamenei assassination – FT

The Iranian supreme leader was killed on Saturday while he was “having breakfast,” US President Donald Trump has said

Israeli intelligence hacked nearly all of Tehran’s traffic cameras to prepare the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Financial Times has reported, citing sources.

The US and Israel attacked Iran on Saturday, killing Khamenei and other senior officials.

The cameras in the Iranian capital had been hacked for years, with feeds encrypted and transmitted to Israel, the outlet wrote on Monday.

One camera, installed on the street where Khamenei’s compound was located, provided an angle allowing analysts to track the vehicles and routines of security personnel. The data was reportedly processed to build what spies call a “pattern of life” of officials and their guards.

Israel also disrupted components of mobile phone towers near the compound to block potential warnings, according to the FT.

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The attack on Iran had been planned for months but the operation was adjusted after US and Israeli intelligence confirmed that Khamenei and his senior officials would be meeting in his compound in Tehran on Saturday morning. The US reportedly had a human source in Tehran who provided confirmation.

Khamenei was having breakfast with senior aides at the time of the strike, US President Donald Trump told Fox News on Monday. They were “thinking they were safe because it was in broad daylight,” he added.

Trump framed the campaign, dubbed Operation Epic Fury, as necessary to dismantle Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Tehran has insisted the strikes were entirely unprovoked and has retaliated with missiles and drones targeting Israel and US bases across the Middle East.

READ MORE: US lawmaker denies regime change planned for Iran

According to the FT, over the years, “Israel has assassinated hundreds of people overseas, including militant leaders, nuclear scientists, chemical engineers – and many innocent bystanders.”