US to launch major bombing campaign against Iran this weekend, Hersh reports

Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, citing Israeli sources and American officials he has trusted for decades, has claimed that the United States will launch a heavy bombing campaign against Iran this weekend.

Hersh stated that the plan aims to completely dismantle Iran’s nuclear program and overthrow the Ayatollah-led government in Tehran.

“This is a heads-up on what is likely to happen in Iran, possibly as early as this weekend,” Hersh wrote.

The journalist confirmed the information with a long-serving US official in Washington, who reportedly said that everything would be “under control” if Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei were to “step down.”

“It is not known how this could happen short of an assassination,” Hersh commented.

The goal is to overthrow Khamenei

According to Hersh, the Trump administration fully supports Israel’s plan to rid Iran of any trace of its nuclear weapons program. The report noted that American and Israeli planners never considered bringing back the Shah’s son, who is currently living in exile near Washington.

However, Hersh wrote that there were discussions within the White House planning group about installing a moderate religious leader to govern the country if Khamenei were overthrown.

“The Israelis were vehemently opposed to this idea,” Hersh noted, quoting the US official he spoke with:

“They don’t care about the religious issue, but they demand a political puppet they can control. We are divided with the Izzies (Israelis) on this. The result would be permanent hostility and a conflict that would last forever. Bibi (Netanyahu) is desperately trying to draw the US in as his ally against all Muslims, using the plight of his citizens as propaganda fodder.”

New targets: Revolutionary Guards and police stations

Hersh indicated that the planned bombing would have new targets, including bases of the Revolutionary Guards, who have countered those campaigning against the revolutionary leadership since the Shah’s overthrow in early 1979.

“The Israeli government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, hopes the bombing will provide ‘a means to create an uprising’ against Iran’s current regime,” Hersh said.

According to the report, Iranian police stations and government buildings containing files on suspected dissidents in Iran will also be attacked.

The ultimate target: The Fordo nuclear facility

Seymour Hersh stated that the White House has approved an all-out bombing campaign in Iran, but the ultimate target—the centrifuges located at least 80 meters underground at the Fordo facility—will not be hit this weekend.

Hersh wrote that this delay was at Trump’s insistence, as the president wanted the shock of the bombing to be minimized as much as possible by the time the Wall Street stock market opened on Monday.

Hersh also added that Trump had objected on social media this morning to a Wall Street Journal report claiming he had decided to attack Iran, writing that he had not yet decided on a path forward.

Hersh noted that the Fordo facility houses the majority of Iran’s most advanced centrifuges. According to recent reports from the International Atomic Energy Agency, these centrifuges have produced 900 pounds of uranium enriched to 60% purity, just a short step away from weapons-grade levels.