In the wee hours of 13 June, as whispers of a second-generation nuclear agreement between Iran and the US were poised to emerge from the mediation by Oman, Israel acted with stunning finality. It did not wait for diplomacy to meander its hesitant path. Instead, it launched Operation Rising Lion, striking deep into the heart of Iran’s military and nuclear command just 48 hours before the Americans were supposed to meet the Iranians.