On the night of April 13th, Iran launched over 300 killer drones, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles towards Israel in response to Israel’s earlier attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, which resulted in the death of two senior Revolutionary Guard members. This marked the first direct military attack on Israeli territory by Iran since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. The two ancient peoples, Iran representing the Persian nation and Israel representing the Jewish nation, have had a historically close relationship that has undergone significant changes since the Islamic Revolution in Iran.
Looking back at history, the Persian nation represented by Iran and the Jewish nation represented by Israel are both ancient peoples in the Middle East with close historical ties.
In the 11th century BC, the Kingdom of Israel was established, later dividing into the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah. In 772 BC, the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrian Empire, and the Kingdom of Judah also came under Assyrian rule. In 586 BC, the Babylonian army captured the capital of the Kingdom of Judah, Jerusalem, and destroyed the Solomon’s Temple (the First Temple), leading to the exile of the Jewish people to Babylon.
In 550 BC, the Persian tribal leader Cyrus the Great established the Persian Empire. Twelve years later, Cyrus defeated the Babylonian Empire. He ordered the release of the Jewish people, allowing them to return to the promised land of Canaan and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. From this perspective, the Persians were benevolent towards the Jews.
However, after the Islamic Revolution in Iran, the relationship between Iran and Israel rapidly deteriorated. Since Israel’s establishment in 1947, Iran and Israel have roughly gone through five periods.
In November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly passed the partition plan for Palestine. On May 14, 1948, the same day Britain ended its mandate over Palestine, Israel declared independence.
The day after Israel’s independence, Arab countries formed a coalition to invade Israel. While Iran opposed Israel’s establishment in the UN vote, it had a degree of sympathy for Israel and refrained from involvement in the Arab-Israeli conflict due to concerns about pan-Arab nationalism.
In March 1950, Iran recognized Israel as a sovereign state, becoming the second Muslim country, after Turkey, to do so.
Efforts to establish formal diplomatic relations between Iran and Israel faced strong opposition from Arab countries and conservative religious forces in Iran. Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh even temporarily severed ties with Israel in 1951 and ordered the closure of the Israeli embassy in Tehran, but Iran did not revoke its recognition of Israel.
In 1953, Mossadegh was overthrown in a military coup, and the pro-Western Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, came to power. After the restoration of the monarchy, Iran’s relations with Israel were further strengthened.
On the Middle Eastern stage, there are three main players: Arab countries, Israel, and Iran. The Arab countries have numerical strength, while Israel and Iran are relatively isolated. To counterbalance the Arab world, the difficult relationship between Iran and Israel gradually improved.
Based on mutual security concerns and shared interests, Iran and Israel supported each other in political, economic, and military fields. There were frequent visits between the two countries, and Israel’s airline opened a direct flight route from Tel Aviv to Tehran, promoting people-to-people exchanges.
Economically, Iran became Israel’s largest source of oil. From the Six-Day War until the Islamic Revolution, Iran supplied Israel with oil. Between 1959 and 1971, up to 80-90% of Israel’s crude oil came from Iran. At the same time, Israel helped Iran develop agricultural technology and exported weapons to Iran.
Militarily, the two countries also had extensive cooperation, much of it kept secret to avoid angering nearby Arab countries. Iran’s security and intelligence organization, SAVAK, partially received training from Israel’s intelligence agency, Mossad.
In the 1970s, Israel even proposed a joint research program on nuclear weapons with Iran, but the Iranian King rejected the idea, believing Iran did not need nuclear weapons. Despite differing views on nuclear weapons, the two countries signed a secret project code-named the “Flower Project” for the joint development of missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, which was suspended due to the Iranian revolution.
In 1974, Iran insisted on allowing Israel to participate in the 7th Asian Games held in Tehran, despite opposition from many Arab and some Muslim countries. During the wars between Israel and Arab countries, the Pahlavi government of Iran maintained a neutral stance and even admired the achievements of the Israeli military in the Six-Day War. Prior to formally appointing an ambassador in the 1970s, Israel had a substantive embassy in Tehran.
Iran, as the most powerful oil-producing country in the Persian Gulf, had border disputes with the Soviet Union, and the pro-American foreign policy of the Pahlavi regime made Iran a significant and close ally of the United States.
At that time, the social status of Iranian women was markedly different from other Islamic countries. Sometimes, in nostalgic photos, people can see many Persians in Western clothing and women in mini skirts, largely from that era.
In January 1979, Iran underwent the Islamic Revolution, forcing the exile of the Pahlavi king and the establishment of an Islamic Republic under the leadership of Ruhollah Khomeini. Iran shifted from a secular, westernized country to a theocratic state.
Khomeini was an advocate of radical ideologies, opposing monarchy, colonialism, imperialism, Westernization, secularism, and aimed to export his revolution to establish an Islamic world order. His foreign policy followed the motto of “Neither East nor West, only Islamic.”
Regarding Israel, Khomeini viewed it as a “Little Satan” following the “Great Satan,” the United States, considering Israel a malignant tumor at the heart of the Islamic world that needed to be eradicated to avoid future troubles.
Iran does not recognize the legitimacy of Israel as a sovereign state, leading to the discontinuation of all cooperative projects, withdrawal of personnel, and severance of official ties. Iran sought to awaken all Muslims to support the Palestinian cause of eliminating Israel.
The relationship between the two countries plummeted to an all-time low.
In the same year as the Islamic Revolution, Saddam Hussein ascended to the presidency of Iraq. Saddam, a strongman with ambitions to unify the Arab world, and Khomeini both rose to power simultaneously, leading to the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War in 1980.
Both Iran and Arab countries were too preoccupied with the war to focus on Israel, significantly reducing pressure on Israel. Israel’s attitudes towards Iran also underwent subtle changes. Compared to Iran, Israel was more concerned about Iraq. If Iraq emerged victorious from the Iran-Iraq War, it would greatly boost Arab nationalism and pose a greater threat to Israel. After weighing various factors, Israel decided to support Iran.
Nine days after the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War, Israel’s Defense Minister publicly announced Israel’s willingness to provide assistance to Iran in exchange for a change in Iran’s stance towards Israel. Israel’s Foreign Minister also urged the United States to set aside past grievances and provide aid to Iran. He emphasized that unless timely weapon assistance was provided to Iran, Iraq could destroy most of Iran’s military capabilities.
Despite Khomeini’s animosity towards Israel, he reluctantly accepted aid from Israel in the face of repeated defeats and for the long-term interests of the Islamic world. While continuing to denounce Israel, Khomeini engaged in secret arms deals with Israel.
Reportedly, during the initial phase of the Iran-Iraq War, 80% of Iran’s imported weapons came from Israel. Israeli military advisors frequently operated in Iran, even going to the front lines to gather first-hand information about the war to provide Iran with more suitable weapons.
Following the end of the Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War, which divided the Arab world, coupled with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the common interests between Iran and Israel diminished, leading the two countries from secret cooperation and indifference to open hostility.
Khomeini passed away in June 1989, and subsequent Iranian governments have maintained the policy of not recognizing Israel. Over the decades, both sides have attempted to consolidate and expand their power and influence in the region, leading to escalating hostilities and conflict rhetoric.
Iran supports various political and armed groups in the Middle East, including in Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen, who view Israel as their primary enemy. Israel also supports some factions opposing the ruling powers in Iran. The proxy conflict between the two sides is complex and ongoing, significantly impacting the political and security dynamics in the Middle East.
The conflict involves network attacks and sabotage against each other’s infrastructure, as well as attacks on nuclear facilities and oil tankers. Israel has vowed never to allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons. Iran has accused Israel of carrying out destructive attacks on its nuclear and military facilities.
On October 7th last year, an attack by Iran-backed Hamas on Israel was the largest-scale assault Israel had faced in decades, leading to the Gaza War.
For the current Iranian regime, reconciliation with Israel seems impossible.
Over the years, many Arab countries that once viewed Israel as an enemy have normalized relations with Israel. However, Iran, once a close ally, has become an irreconcilable enemy of Israel.
Responsibility Editor: Lian Shuhua