Israel’s attacks on Iran hint at a bigger goal: regime change

Israel’s surprise attack on Iran had an obvious goal of sharply disrupting Tehran’s nuclear program and lengthening the time it would need to develop an atomic weapon.

But the scale of the attacks, Israel’s choice of targets, and its politicians’ own words suggest another, longer-term objective: toppling the regime itself.

The strikes early on Friday hit not just Iran’s nuclear facilities and missile factories but also key figures in the country’s military chain of command and its nuclear scientists, blows that appear aimed at diminishing Iran’s credibility both at home and among its allies in the region — factors that could destabilize the Iranian leadership, experts said.