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Israel's New Way of War

(Center for Strategic and International Studies) Benjamin Jensen - The Israeli operation codenamed Rising Lion unfolded on June 13, 2025. First came swarms of small explosive drones that Israeli commandos had reportedly pre-positioned inside Iran months earlier, striking air-defense radars and communications nodes. Minutes later, over 200 Israeli fighter aircraft conducted precision strikes against more than 100 nuclear and military targets across Iran, including senior military leaders. The result was operational dislocation: Iranian early-warning networks were saturated, senior commanders were killed, and decision-making channels fractured. This shock-and-awe approach by Israel explains the limited initial Iranian response. The attack illustrates how combinations of conventional long-range strikes and unconventional operations have a unique role in modern war. As a result, Operation Rising Lion is a blueprint for future campaigns and suggests key investments the U.S. military will need to make to adapt to the changing character of war. The writer is director of the Futures Lab and a senior fellow at CSIS.
2025-06-18 00:00:00
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