The Iran–Israel proxy conflict
Hello family,
April 05,2024.
Let's start,
There is an ongoing proxy struggle between Iran and Israel, which is often referred to as the Iran-Israel proxy war[53] or the Iran-Israel Cold War [54]. Iran has aided Lebanese Shia militias involved in the Israeli-Lebanese conflict, chiefly Hezbollah. Iran has supported Palestinian organisations like Hamas in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel has killed Iranian nuclear experts and sponsored Iranian rebels including the People's Mujahedin of Iran. It has also carried out airstrikes against Iranian partners in Syria. 2018 saw a direct strike on Iranian forces in Syria by Israeli forces.[55]
With a shared perception of Arab nations as a threat, Imperial Iran and Israel maintained tight ties, driven by the periphery doctrine. Iran severed links with the Islamic revolution in 1979, although during the Iran–Iraq War that followed, secret ties persisted.
Iran supported Shia forces during Israel's occupation of Southern Lebanon and provided Hezbollah with weapons and training during Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982.[56] Prior to 1979, Islamists in Iran had provided material support to the Palestinians; following that year, Iran made an effort to establish ties with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, as well as the Palestine Liberation Organisation. In 2006, Israel and Hezbollah engaged in combat. Israel and the Palestinians have engaged in combat in and around the Gaza Strip on multiple occasions: in 2008–2009, 2012, 2014, 2021, and 2023–2024. The two bloodiest battles in the Arab-Israeli conflict were the Israel-Hamas war and the Lebanon War in 1982.[57]
The Iran-Israel dispute has been attributed to a number of factors. Due to shared dangers, Iran and Israel had historically enjoyed cordial relations; However, by the 1990s, Iraq had become weaker and the USSR had collapsed.[58] Islamists in Iran have traditionally supported the Palestinian people because they believe them to be "oppressed".[59] Academics surmise that Iran is trying to gain more clout with the Sunnis and Arabs, who control the Middle East, by aiding the Palestinians.[60][61] From an ideological standpoint, Iran has foretold Israel's destruction and wants to replace it with a one-state solution.[62] Israel believes that Iran poses an existential threat[63] and charges its government with planning to carry out genocide.[64] Israel has therefore pushed for military action and sanctions on Iran in an effort to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons.[65]
Before ascending to the position of Iran's Supreme Leader in 1979, Ruhollah Khomeini was a critic of Israel. Because he saw Israel as an ally of the Pahlavi regime, he disapproved of the Pahlavi dynasty's relations with Israel.[66] After the Iranian Revolution of 1979, the new administration led by Khomeini had an antagonistic stance towards Israel. Israel was viewed as a colonial outpost by the newly elected Iranian government.[67] Iran renounced its recognition of Israel as a state, cut off diplomatic, business, and other connections, and referred to Israel as "occupied Palestine" and its government as the "Zionist regime"[69].
During the Iran-Iraq War, which lasted from 1980 to 1988, Israel supported Iran despite the hostilities between the two nations. Israel was one of Iran's primary suppliers of military hardware and instructors during the conflict. When Israel struck and destroyed Iraq's Osirak nuclear plant during Operation Babylon, it provided direct help to Iran's war effort. One of the main elements of Iraq's nuclear weapons programme was thought to be the nuclear reactor.[70]
