Watch Webinar – U.S. and Israel Strike Iran
Click here to read a transcript.
On February 28, the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes against Iran in what President Donald Trump described as a “massive and ongoing” military campaign. This historic joint operation—dubbed Epic Fury and Roaring Lion by the United States and Israel, respectively—eliminated senior Iranian leadership, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, Mohammad Shirazi, and IRGC Chief Mohammad Pakpour, and targeted other key elements of Iran’s military and nuclear infrastructure.
The daylight attack came just days after Iran once again rebuffed American diplomatic proposals. President Trump called on the Iranian people to “take over your government,” while warning that the campaign may continue for days. Iran subsequently launched retaliatory strikes toward Israel and U.S. targets across the region, with explosions reported in multiple Gulf states and regional airspace disruptions underway.
JINSA hosted a webinar examining the objectives of Operations Epic Fury and Roaring Lion as well as what this moment means for the Iranian regime, regional stability, and U.S.-Israel strategic coordination. The webinar featured JINSA Hertog Distinguished Fellow Gen Frank McKenzie, USMC (ret.), former Commander, United States Central Command; JINSA Distinguished Fellow IDF MG (ret.) Yaakov Amidror, former National Security Advisor to Israel’s Prime Minister; and JINSA Sherman-Vidal Distinguished Fellow IDF MG (ret.) Oded Bassiuk, former head of the IDF Operations Directorate.
The discussion was moderated by JINSA President and CEO Michael Makovsky, PhD.
Gen Frank McKenzie, USMC (ret.) Gen Frank McKenzie, USMC (ret.) is the Hertog Distinguished Fellow at JINSA and also oversees national security research at the University of South Florida. He is the former Commander, U.S. Central Command, as well as former Commander, U.S. Marine Forces Central Command. He also previously served as Director for Strategic Plans and Policy at the Pentagon. |
IDF MG (ret.) Yaakov Amidror IDF MG (ret.) Yaakov Amidror is a Distinguished Fellow at JINSA. Prior to joining JINSA, MG Amidror was the National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of Israel, as well as the head of Israel’s National Security Council. Among other distinguished postings, MG Amidror also served as Director of Israel’s Intelligence Analysis Division. |
IDF MG (ret.) Oded Bassiuk IDF MG (ret.) Oded Bassiuk is Sherman-Vidal Distinguished Fellow at JINSA. He is the former Head of the Operations Directorate in the Israeli military, where he oversaw campaigns in recent years against enemy forces in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, Iran, and elsewhere. |
John Hannah John Hannah is the Randi & Charles Wax Senior Fellow at JINSA. Hannah served in a range of U.S. government positions, including National Security Advisor to the U.S. Vice President and Senior Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of State. |
Michael Makovsky, PhD Michael Makovsky, PhD, is President and CEO of JINSA. Makovsky is a former senior Pentagon official and is a leading policy expert on U.S.-Israel defense ties, U.S. Middle East policy, and the role of energy in U.S. national security policy. |
