The gap between Israel’s assessment of Iran’s nuclear program and that of the U.S. helps explain why the two allies haven’t been aligned in recent days on dealing with Tehran.

Israel has launched a series of strikes against Iran, targeting the country’s nuclear program and other military infrastructure. Iran has launched its own strikes in retaliation.

The Iranian military's new head of emergency command was killed in an Israeli Air Force strike only four days after his predecessor was killed in the initial hours of Israel's strikes targeting Iran's nuclear program.