Gen. Hossein Salami was the chief of one of the country’s most powerful centers, and his death was a tough blow to Iran’s embattled leadership, which has had a series of setbacks in the past 20 months of Middle Eastern war and unrest. Salami rose to power six years ago and had a history of threatening the U.S. and Israel.

Speaking to The Media Line, MK Ram Ben Barak said that the Islamic Republic had plenty of chances to avoid this war. “We gave them time. So did the US. But Iran kept sprinting toward the bomb,” the former deputy Mossad chief said. “That left us with no choice but to hit back at their annihilation plan against Israel.”