Comments

You have commented 375 times on Rantburg.

Your Name

Your e-mail (optional)

Website (optional)

	My Original Nic Pic-a-Nic Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Foto

Submit your comments on this article

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Cancelling 'Puss in Boots': How Israel's Attempt to Destabilize Iran Failed

2026-09-09

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
by Leonid Tsukanov

[REGNUM] Israel's anti-Iranian operation "Lion's Roar" continues to unravel. Specifically, details of the Mossad intelligence agency's failed operation to destroy the Iranian vertical power structure have leaked online.

Operation Puss in Boots envisioned a combination of several plans—from organizing a rebellion in the rear to a coup in Tehran—and former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was arguably intended to play a special role. However, these plans were never realized.

COMBINE PLANS
"Puss in Boots" was born, first and foremost, for reasons of optimization.

By January 2026, Israeli intelligence agencies had too many operational plans in the works, all of which were essentially aimed at the same task: breaking the resistance within Iran.

In addition to its ongoing attempts to harness economic protests in the Islamic Republic, Mossad sought ways to strengthen the authority of opposition leaders in exile (primarily a descendant of the last deposed Shah), split the Iranian ruling class, and provoke an “ethnic revolution” in the periphery.

Given the multiple overlaps, the operations were combined into a single multi-move operation dubbed "Puss in Boots." The new plan envisioned launching several simultaneous attacks: inciting rebellion in remote provinces, provoking student protests in the capital, and orchestrating a coup in the highest echelons of power.

The intelligence agency has decided to place a backup bet on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, known for his anti-American and anti-Israeli rhetoric. Apparently, this is in case the Iranian government fails to collapse after the uprising in the periphery and consolidates around determined or odious figures.

In this context, the hawkish and ultra-conservative Ahmadinejad seemed a very likely candidate for the presidency, and his fierce rhetoric about "uprooting Zionism from the Middle East" would clearly resonate widely with the Iranian street and, more importantly, with most of the elite. Although Ahmadinejad's ability to govern was doubted until the very end.

However, given that the main goal of "Lion's Roar" was to decapitate the republic, Israel decided to take the risk. But it was done in such a way as to avoid arousing any premature suspicions.

On February 28, the first day of the "Lion's Roar," Ahmadinejad's residence was bombed. As was later revealed, the strike hit the outbuildings housing the former president's armored vehicle and his personal security detail.

The former president himself was in another wing at the time and was unharmed. Almost immediately after the attack, a black Peugeot with false license plates pulled up to the scene. It picked up Ahmadinejad and fled in an unknown direction shortly before emergency services arrived. A second attack was then launched against the residence, this time targeting the main building.

Thanks to this combination, Iranian elites were convinced for a time that Ahmadinejad had perished under the rubble along with his guards. Iranian state television even managed to label him a martyr.

At this time, the ex-president was allegedly hiding in a “secret hideout” somewhere far from the capital and was supposed to remain there until the final stage of the operation.

However, what happened next was something no source could explain: Ahmadinejad suddenly refused to cooperate and returned to Tehran, where, according to several reports, he took refuge under the wing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

At the same time, the authorities were in no particular hurry to debunk the myth of the former president's death, apparently intending to wait for the Israelis to take further steps. But they chose not to take any more risks and canceled "Puss in Boots."

Ahmadinejad was subsequently detained as an accomplice of the enemy – at least, this is the version the Israelis insist on.

WHOSE IDEA?
It's not known for certain who exactly proposed Ahmadinejad as a puppet (and who should be held de facto responsible for the failure of this ambitious operation). Depending on the source, the information varies almost diametrically.

Media outlets close to the government, through which the leak was largely made, hint that the author of the plan was the now former head of Mossad, David Barnea, whose confidants had been "guiding" Ahmadinejad since at least 2024.

It is alleged that Israeli intelligence agents found a way to convert the former president's disappointment at being denied new elections (in favor of the more predictable and manageable Said Jalili) into loyalty and win him over to their side. They even went so far as to secretly pay him for housing and travel, and intelligence agents repeatedly arranged "chance" meetings in third countries.

According to leaked documents, Barnea personally met with Ahmadinejad several times. He spoke with him in early February 2026 in Budapest (approximately a week and a half before the "Lion's Roar"), where Ahmadinejad traveled incognito under the pretext of medical treatment. In Israeli intelligence reports, Ahmadinejad was codenamed "Friend."

In addition, Barnea defended his candidacy to the country's leadership and insisted that relying on "flexible reformists" (for example, former Foreign Minister and "architect" of the US-Iran nuclear deal Mohammad Javad Zari ) would neither help him retain the reins of power for long, nor would it help him collapse Iran.

The opposition press, on the contrary, has labeled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the ideologist behind "Puss in Boots." Netanyahu reportedly insisted on implementing this plan, even when one of its key components—the Kurdish uprising in the border region—failed due to the refusal of nationalist underground fighters to fight without US support.

He defended Ahmadinejad, and during meetings, the source says, even called him "a great friend of Israel." It's possible, however, that the source took the Israeli prime minister's characteristic sarcasm at face value.

LET BYGONES BE BYGONES...
It is noteworthy that details of Operation Puss in Boots were partially leaked to the press back in mid-July, when the New York Times published (citing unnamed sources) a major investigation into the fate of the "suddenly resurrected" Ahmadinejad.

However, no attention was paid to who exactly originated the controversial idea. Repeated leaks in September only further polarized opinion.

However, while few paid attention to the revelations in the summer, a month before the Israeli Knesset elections, the story took on almost symbolic significance. Netanyahu and Barnea found themselves on opposite sides of the fence, searching for ways to further antagonize their opponent.

And so, at the first opportunity, they once again rushed to blame each other for the fact that their "high-ranking mole" ultimately "through his own stupidity" ended up in the hands of Iranian counterintelligence and thwarted an ambitious operation. Even though official Tehran never acknowledged the arrest of the former president.

Be that as it may, Ahmadinejad's public activity has indeed declined sharply in recent months. He was last seen in public in July 2026, attending a meeting of the Expediency Council's economic commission, where he served as one of the speakers. A few days later, he participated in memorial services for Ali Khamenei. Since then, he has not been invited to any major public events.

Ahmadinejad's aides have vehemently denied reports of his arrest, blaming his absence from public view on his "poor health" following Israeli strikes on his residence. However, requests to dispel the speculation—for example, by recording a video message—have been met with a categorical refusal.

It's possible that such caution is dictated by orders from above. Ahmadinejad disappeared from public view in much the same way as Ismail Qaani, whom the Israeli press previously called one of the organizers of the assassination of Khamenei Sr. and "the greatest mole of the 21st century."

But in July 2026, Qaani appeared at the funeral ceremonies as if nothing had happened and was subsequently seen repeatedly in the entourage of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. This indicates that attempts to tarnish his reputation in the eyes of the new leadership had failed.

Tehran is not inclined to organize a witch hunt, especially when the warnings about betrayal at the top come exclusively from the mouths of its strategic opponents.

At the same time, there are many in Iran's conservative camp who want to completely remove the former president from the game, including due to his unpredictability and impulsiveness.

As the reformist bloc led by President Masoud Pezeshkian suffers ever greater image costs from the increasing sanctions pressure on Iran, the desire for decisive change and a show of force – from a final withdrawal from negotiations with the US to acquiring nuclear weapons – is growing among ordinary citizens.

This is precisely what radical hawks like Ahmadinejad promise hotheads. Any attempt to harness such revanchist sentiments is guaranteed to upset the balance between the president and the supreme leader, who, despite his assertive rhetoric, prefers to remain pragmatic, and provoke a rift. The Israelis will be quick to exploit this.

Therefore, "Puss in Boots" effectively ends Ahmadinejad's political career. Even if the reports of his arrest and treason charges are an Israeli hoax, the former president will clearly have to put any high-profile positions in Iranian public policy on hold for now. At least until the situation in the region stabilizes.

Posted by:badanov

#1 comments); ?>werwer

Posted by: trailing wife 2026-09-09 09:35

00:00