Ahead of strikes, IDF chief told pilots they are ‘making history’

By Emanuel Fabian

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28 February 2026, 3:46 pm

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Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (center), is seen alongside IAF chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar (left) and Deputy Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Tamir Yadai (right), at the IAF's underground command center at the IDF HQ in Tel Aviv, February 28, 2026. (Israel Defense Forces)

Ahead of the joint Israeli and US strikes on Iran, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir told Israeli Air Force pilots this morning that they are “making history.”

“Saturday dawn, Operation Roaring Lion begins — you are authorized to carry out (the mission), strike your targets — you are making history. I trust you. Good luck to us all,” Zamir writes in a note that was delivered to the pilots ahead of the strikes.

Zamir oversaw the strikes from the IAF’s underground command center with IAF chief Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar and other top commanders.