Posted on 05/19/2026 8:13:09 PM PDT by Cronos
Days after Israeli strikes killed Iran’s supreme leader and other officials in the opening salvos of the war, Trump mused publicly it would be best if “someone from within” Iran took over the country.
It turns out that the US and Israel went into the conflict with a particular and surprising someone in mind: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the former Iranian president known for his hard-line, anti-Israel and anti-American views.
But the plan, developed by the Israelis and which Ahmadinejad had been consulted about, quickly went awry, according to the U.S. officials who were briefed on it.
Ahmadinejad was injured on the war’s first day by an Israeli strike at his home in Tehran that had been designed to free him from house arrest, the American officials and an associate of Ahmadinejad said. He survived the strike, they said, but after the near miss he became disillusioned with the regime change plan.
He has not been seen publicly since then and his current whereabouts and condition are unknown.
In a 2019 interview with The New York Times, Mr. Ahmadinejad praised President Trump and argued for a rapprochement between Iran and the United States.
“Mr. Trump is a man of action, He is a businessman and therefore he is capable of calculating cost-benefits and making a decision. We say to him, let’s calculate the long-term cost-benefit of our two nations and not be shortsighted.”
He returned just days before Israel began attacking Iran last June. When that war broke out, he kept a low public profile and posted only few statements on social media. His relative silence about a war with a country that Mr. Ahmadinejad had long viewed as Iran’s main enemy was noted by many on Iranian social media.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
|
Click here: to donate by Credit Card Or here: to donate by PayPal Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794 Thank you very much and God bless you. |
Here is a summary of the article provided by Gemini for those who do not have the patience to track down and actually read a piece from the NY Slimes,
https://gemini.google.com/share/867f36c27924
Here is an unformatted text copy of the summary:
The details of The New York Times report are available.
Here is a summary of the article regarding the alleged US-Israeli war plans involving former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad:
The Core Strategy
The report details a highly secretive, multiphase strategy code-named “Operation Epic Fury”—developed primarily by Israel’s Mossad in consultation with Washington—aimed at achieving regime change in Iran during the opening phases of the war. The core of this plan was to install former hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as the new leader of Iran following the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
The Times of Israel
+ 1
Key Details of the Plan
The Post-Khamenei Vision: Following the US-Israeli airstrikes that killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, US President Donald Trump publicly hinted at the strategy by stating it would be preferable if “someone from within” Iran took control. Planners believed that the combination of devastating airstrikes, damage to critical infrastructure, and a planned (but ultimately unmaterialized) mobilization of Kurdish forces would fracture the Iranian government, leaving room for an alternative leadership to step in.
The Times of Israel
Why Ahmadinejad?: Having Ahmadinejad run the country was considered highly unusual given his historical, fiercely anti-Western rhetoric and past declarations calling to “wipe Israel off the map.” However, US and Israeli intelligence reportedly viewed him as a pragmatist capable of calculating “cost-benefits” who also possessed the necessary political, social, and military gravity to manage a post-collapse Iran.
The Times of Israel
The “Jailbreak” Strike: Leading up to the war, Ahmadinejad had feuded significantly with Iran’s current theocratic establishment and was placed under house arrest in Tehran. On the opening day of the conflict, an Israeli airstrike targeted his residence. This operation was intended to act as a “jailbreak”—eliminating his Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) captors to free him.
The Times of Israel
The Outcome and Setbacks
The Strike Went Awry: While the operation successfully targeted his residence, it nearly killed Ahmadinejad instead of simply freeing him. He survived but was wounded and reportedly became disillusioned with the broader coalition plan.
The Times of Israel
Miscalculation of Resilience: “Operation Epic Fury” envisioned a three-stage total collapse of the Iranian government. However, despite the successful strike on Khamenei, the anticipated internal political upheaval failed to trigger a complete systemic collapse. Analysts note that Western and Israeli planners significantly underestimated the institutional resilience of Iran’s political and military structure.
Current Status: Mossad Director David Barnea reportedly maintained to associates that the plan had a strong chance of success had events unfolded perfectly. However, Ahmadinejad has not been seen in public since the strike on his home, and his current whereabouts remain completely unknown.
The Times of Israel
That’s nuts.
In nearly fifty years, no President had the balls to take on the Iranians... Something that everyone who values human life has always known would have to be done... And you have the nerve to insult the great blessing to the entire world that President Trump is??? What a guy!
What a cluster F.
Trump is fine. US and Israel are using the time to track targets and restock. The time isnt being wasted, because they know the IRGC will not surrender.
Thanks for posting this.
However, and just speaking for me and my lonesome,
I am no longer willing to read NYT, it has lost ALL credibility with its latest smear job pack of lies... IMHO.
If he was part of the post IRGC plan, Mossad may have him.
We’re already sacrificing the House majority for him. I hope we get something in return.
Your opinion means very little. I would say you are over your head.
I would not be so sure of that.
No more nuts than where we are today.
What are we doing now? Just sitting and waiting on the Arabs and the Persians to make some kind of deal? Time means nothing to them. Neither do world economics.
But it is pretty nuts isn’t it?
He has been very hardline against Israel. Israelis bombing his house, oops. So solly.
I keep thinking there is much more to all this mess than meets the eye but am reminded that intrigue only begat intrigue.
This story is from the Slimes; there is no way to know how accurate it actually is.
What are we doing now? Just sitting and waiting on the Arabs and the Persians to make some kind of deal? Time means nothing to them. Neither do world economics.
And that’s our problem, and Trump’s, we have an insatiable need for instant gratification, and we are not willing to wait things out.
Two to Four weeks has extended now to going on three months and now with no end in sight. Over selling and under delivering has a way of making people impatient and irritable. It also makes them feel disappointed and betrayed. Especially when the offer is made with such certainty as this one has been and for an event that mostly nobody had on their agenda. An out of the blue penalty for the people that just made matters worse.
Poor Arcade Boy did you lose all your quarters? The only reason we have a chance to beat the historical norm in this midterm is because of President Donald Trump! So, grow up and stop your sniveling.
Congrats to Trump and Bibi on their historic accomplishment
This is an economic issue, not a psychological one; the price of oil directly impacts the country's GDP.
Two to Four weeks has extended now to going on three months and now with no end in sight. Over selling and under delivering has a way of making people impatient and irritable
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.