Not for the first time in his nearly 18 years as Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu’s government was wobbling. Israel’s opposition had called a vote last week to dissolve the parliament and — infuriated by Netanyahu’s repeated failure to pass a law exempting religious students from military service — the two ultraorthodox parties in Netanyahu’s far-right coalition were threatening to back it.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that the change or fall of Iran's leadership was not a goal of Israel's attacks but could be a result. "The matter of changing the regime or the fall of this regime is first and foremost a matter for the Iranian people.