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The History of Iran-Israel Relations: From Alliance to Adversary

Fri, 13 Jun 2025 12:48:00 GMT
The History of Iran-Israel Relations: From Alliance to Adversary

An alliance that blossomed in the periphery of the Arab world, Iran and Israel's relationship has devolved into one of the most intractable and explosive rivalries in the Middle East. What was once a partnership built on shared strategic interests has morphed into a bitter enmity, characterized by proxy wars, clandestine operations, and the ever-present shadow of nuclear conflict. This article delves into the dramatic history of their relations, tracing the arc from cooperation to a deeply entrenched adversarial posture.

From Friends to Frenemies: A Strategic Alignment

In the years following Israel's establishment in 1948, the nascent state found itself largely isolated in a hostile Arab neighborhood. Seeking to counterbalance this, Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, conceived the "Alliance of the Periphery," a strategy to build relationships with non-Arab states on the fringes of the Middle East. Iran, a non-Arab, Shia-majority nation with its own historical tensions with Arab states, was a natural fit for this doctrine.

Under the rule of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was reinstalled in a 1953 coup backed by the West, relations between Iran and Israel flourished. Though Iran initially voted against the UN Partition Plan for Palestine in 1947 and Israel's subsequent admission to the UN, it became the second Muslim-majority country, after Turkey, to recognize Israel as a sovereign state.

This recognition paved the way for a deep, albeit often discreet, partnership. The two countries established missions that enjoyed diplomatic privileges and fostered close economic and security ties throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Iran became a crucial supplier of crude oil to Israel, especially after the 1967 Six-Day War when many Arab nations imposed oil boycotts. At one point, Iran supplied about 70 percent of Israel's oil needs through a jointly established pipeline.

In return, Israel provided Iran with advanced agricultural technology, and its companies were active in Iranian infrastructure projects. The cooperation extended to the military and intelligence spheres, with Israel offering technical support and training to the Iranian armed forces and assisting in the development of its military-industrial complex. This mutually beneficial relationship was a cornerstone of both nations' foreign policies during the Cold War, as both were aligned with the United States.

However, it's important to note that the Shah's government never established full, formal diplomatic relations with Israel, conditioning it on an end to the occupation of Palestinian territories. Iran also provided financial assistance to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the 1960s, showcasing a nuanced policy that balanced strategic interests with a defense of the Palestinian cause.

The 1979 Revolution: A Seismic Shift

The 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran marked an abrupt and radical turning point in Iran-Israel relations. The overthrow of the Shah and the rise of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ushered in a new era defined by a fervent anti-Western and anti-Israel ideology. The new regime viewed Israel as an illegitimate "Zionist entity" and a tool of Western imperialism in the Middle East.

Khomeini famously labeled the United States the "Great Satan" and Israel the "Little Satan." His government severed all diplomatic and commercial ties with Israel, closed the Israeli embassy in Tehran, and handed it over to the PLO. Iranian passports were stamped with "the holder of this passport is not entitled to travel to occupied Palestine." This ideological shift prioritized support for oppressed Muslims, particularly the Palestinians, and became a central tenet of the Islamic Republic's foreign policy.

Interestingly, despite the public vitriol, some covert ties persisted, particularly during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988). Israel, viewing Saddam Hussein's Iraq as a more immediate threat, was a significant supplier of military hardware to Iran and even provided military instructors. In a notable instance of this secret cooperation, Israel bombed and destroyed Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor in 1981, a move that directly benefited Iran's war effort.

The Era of Proxy Warfare

By the 1990s, with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the weakening of Iraq in the Gulf War, the strategic landscape of the Middle East had changed. The clandestine relationship between Iran and Israel gave way to open hostility, largely played out through a network of proxy forces.

Iran began to cultivate what it calls the "Axis of Resistance," a network of state and non-state actors aimed at challenging Israeli and American influence in the region. This strategy allowed Tehran to engage in asymmetric warfare, targeting its adversaries without direct military involvement and maintaining plausible deniability.

Hezbollah in Lebanon: Following Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon, Iran dispatched its Revolutionary Guards to support local Shiite militias. This support was instrumental in the formation of Hezbollah, which grew into a formidable military and political force in Lebanon. Iran has since provided Hezbollah with extensive funding, training, and weaponry, transforming it into a key proxy against Israel. The 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah stands as a major confrontation in this proxy conflict. Palestinian Factions: While Iranian Islamists had supported Palestinian causes even before the revolution, this support intensified afterward. Iran forged ties with the PLO and later became a major backer of Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas. This support, which transcends the Shia-Sunni divide, is rooted in a shared anti-Israel ideology. Syria and Iraq: Iran has also extended its influence into Syria and Iraq, reinforcing the Syrian government and supporting various militias. Israel has sought to counter this by conducting numerous airstrikes in Syria and Iraq, targeting Iranian weapons shipments and military installations to prevent the entrenchment of Iranian forces near its borders.

The Nuclear Standoff: An Existential Threat

A central and escalating point of contention in the Iran-Israel relationship is Iran's nuclear program. Israel views the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran as an existential threat, given Tehran's repeated calls for Israel's destruction. Israel is widely believed to possess its own clandestine nuclear arsenal.

The Israeli government has consistently stated that it will not allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons. To this end, Israel has engaged in a multi-pronged strategy that includes diplomatic pressure, sanctions, cyberattacks, and the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientists.

Iran, for its part, has consistently maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful civilian purposes, such as energy production and medical research. However, its advancing uranium enrichment activities and lack of transparency with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have fueled international and Israeli concerns.

A New Chapter: Direct Confrontation

In recent years, the long-running shadow war between Iran and Israel has increasingly spilled out into the open, escalating to direct military confrontations.

The conflict in Gaza that began in October 2023, triggered by an attack from the Iran-backed Hamas, led to increased skirmishes between Israel and another Iranian proxy, Hezbollah, on the Lebanese border.

A significant escalation occurred in April 2024, when Israel bombed an Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, killing several senior Iranian military officials. Iran retaliated by launching a large-scale drone and missile attack directly on Israel, a first in the history of their conflict. Israel responded with its own retaliatory strikes in Iran.

These direct exchanges marked a dangerous new phase in their relationship, moving beyond proxy warfare to a direct state-on-state conflict. The situation escalated further in October 2024 when Iran launched another wave of ballistic missiles at Israel in retaliation for the assassinations of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.

By June 2025, reports emerged of Israeli airstrikes targeting Iran's nuclear and military facilities, described as a "preemptive strike" to neutralize the perceived threat from Iran's nuclear program. These actions have brought the two nations to the brink of a full-scale war, with the international community urging restraint and de-escalation.

The journey of Iran-Israel relations from a strategic alliance to a volatile and direct confrontation is a stark reminder of the ever-shifting geopolitical landscape of the Middle East. What began as a partnership of convenience has become a deeply ideological and dangerous rivalry, with the potential for a wider regional conflict that could have devastating consequences. The world now watches with bated breath as these two adversaries navigate a perilous new era in their long and complex history.

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