On the night of April 13th, Iran launched over 300 killer drones, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles towards Israel in response to an earlier attack by Israel on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, resulting in the deaths of two senior Revolutionary Guard members. This marked Iran’s first direct military attack on Israeli territory since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. The two ancient nations, with historically close relations, have undergone significant changes since the Iranian Islamic Revolution.
Looking back in history, the Persian nation represented by Iran and the Jewish nation represented by Israel both belong to ancient peoples in the Middle East who have had close relations throughout history.
In the 11th century BC, the Kingdom of Israel was established and later split into the Kingdom of Israel (north) and the Kingdom of Judah (south). In 772 BC, the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrian Empire, and the Kingdom of Judah also fell under Assyrian rule. In 586 BC, the Babylonian army conquered the capital of the Kingdom of Judah, Jerusalem, and destroyed the Solomon’s Temple (the First Temple), leading to the enslavement of the Jewish people in Babylon.
In 550 BC, the Persian tribal leader Cyrus the Great established the Persian Empire. Twelve years later, Cyrus defeated the Babylonian Empire and declared the liberation of the Jewish people, allowing them to return to the land of Canaan and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. From this point on, the Persians were seen as benefactors to the Jewish people.
However, after the Iranian Islamic Revolution, relations between Iran and Israel deteriorated rapidly. Since Israel’s founding in 1947, Iran and Israel have gone through five different periods.
In November 1947, the United Nations General Assembly passed the Palestine Partition Plan. On May 14, 1948, the British ended their mandate over Palestine, and Israel declared its independence the same day.
The day after Israel’s independence, Arab countries formed a coalition and invaded Israel. While Iran initially opposed Israel’s establishment in the UN vote, it held a certain sympathy towards Israel and refrained from involvement in the Arab-Israeli conflict due to concerns for pan-Arab nationalism.
In March 1950, Iran recognized Israel as a sovereign state, becoming the second Muslim country in the world, 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 Mosaddegh even temporarily severed relations with Israel in 1951 and ordered the closure of the Israeli embassy in Tehran. However, Iran did not withdraw its recognition of Israel.
In 1953, Mosaddegh was overthrown in a military coup, and Iran restored the monarchy. With the pro-Western Mohammad Reza Pahlavi returning to power as the Shah, Iran’s relationship with Israel was further strengthened.
On the Middle East stage, there are three main actors: Arab countries, Israel, and Iran. Arab countries outnumber Israel and Iran and, in order to counterbalance the Arab world, Iran and Israel, despite being isolated powers, gradually grew closer.
Driven by common security issues and shared interests, Iran and Israel supported each other in political, economic, and military fields. Exchange visits between the two countries’ personnel were common, and Israeli airlines even operated direct flights between Tel Aviv and Tehran, enhancing people-to-people interactions.
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, as much as 80-90% of Israel’s crude oil came from Iran. At the same time, Israel assisted Iran in developing agricultural technology and exporting weapons and equipment.
In the military realm, the two sides also engaged in extensive cooperation, much of which remained secretive to avoid angering nearby Arab countries. Iran’s security and intelligence agency, SAVAK, partly received training from Israel’s intelligence agency, Mossad.
In the 1970s, Israel even proposed a joint research project with Iran on developing nuclear weapons. However, Iranian Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi believed Iran did not need nuclear weapons and rejected Israel’s proposal. While the two countries held different views on nuclear weapons, they signed a secret project code-named the “Flower Project” for joint development of missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, a project that was halted due to the revolution in Iran.
In 1974, despite opposition from many Arab and Muslim countries, Iran insisted on having Israel participate in the 7th Asian Games held in Tehran. During conflicts between Israel and Arab countries, the Iranian government under the Shah mostly maintained neutrality and even admired the achievements of the Israeli military during the 1967 Six-Day War. Although formal embassies were not established until the 1970s, Israel maintained a substantial embassy presence in Tehran.
Iran, being the dominant oil-producing country in the Persian Gulf and having borders with America’s Cold War rival, the Soviet Union, coupled with the Shah’s pro-American foreign policy, made Iran a significant and close ally of the United States.
During that time, the social status of Iranian women differed significantly from that in other Islamic countries. In nostalgic photographs, one can sometimes see many Persians dressed in Western clothing and women in mini skirts, mostly from that era.
In January 1979, Iran underwent the Islamic Revolution, forcing the Shah into exile and establishing the Islamic Republic under religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini. Iran transitioned from a secular, westernized country to a state where politics and religion were fused.
Khomeini was a radical thinker who opposed monarchy, colonialism, imperialism, westernization, and secularism, aiming to export the revolution to establish an Islamic world order. His diplomatic slogan was “Neither East nor West, only Islamic.”
Regarding Israel, Khomeini viewed the country as a “little Satan” following the “Great Satan” America, describing it as a cancer at the heart of the Islamic world that needed to be eradicated to avoid future troubles.
Iran does not recognize Israel’s legitimacy as a sovereign state. All joint projects between the two countries were terminated, personnel were withdrawn, and official contacts were cut off. Iran also sought to rally all Muslims to support the Palestinian cause and the elimination of Israel.
Relations between the two countries instantly plummeted to a freezing point.
In the same year as the Islamic Revolution, Saddam Hussein took the presidency in Iraq. Saddam, like Khomeini, was a strongman with grand ambitions of unifying the Arab world. As both Khomeini and Saddam rose to power simultaneously, the Iran-Iraq War erupted in 1980.
Both Iran and Arab countries were preoccupied with the conflict between Iran and Iraq, greatly easing pressure on Israel. Israel’s attitude 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 significantly boost Arab nationalism and pose a greater threat to Israel. Following careful deliberations, Israel opted to support Iran.
Nine days after the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War, Israel’s Defense Minister publicly stated that Israel was willing to provide assistance to Iran in exchange for a change in Iran’s stance towards Israel. The Israeli Foreign Minister also urged the United States to set aside past grievances and aid Iran. The Israeli Foreign Minister emphasized that failing to provide timely military support to Iran could result in Iraq destroying a large portion of Iran’s military forces.
Despite Khomeini’s disdain for Israel, faced with repeated failures on the battlefield and considerations for the long-term interests of the Islamic world, he accepted Israel’s assistance. While continuing to denounce Israel, Khomeini engaged in secret arms trade with Israel.
Reportedly, during the initial stages of the Iran-Iraq War, 80% of Iran’s imported weapons came from Israel. Israeli military advisors frequently operated within Iran, even going to the frontlines to gather firsthand information about the war to provide more suitable weapons to Iran.
The conclusion of the Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War caused a rift in the Arab world. Following the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the reduction of common interests between Iran and Israel saw the two nations transition from secret cooperation and indifference to open hostility.
In June 1989, Khomeini passed away, and successive Iranian governments upheld the principle of non-recognition towards Israel. For decades, both sides sought to consolidate and expand their power and influence in the region, escalating hostility and heated conflict rhetoric.
Iran supports various political and armed groups in the Middle East, including Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen, all of whom see Israel as a primary enemy. Israel also supports some opposition groups against the ruling regime in Iran. The back-and-forth proxy conflict between the two sides has had significant impacts on the political and security dynamics of the Middle East.
The conflict involves network attacks and destruction of critical infrastructure, as well as attacks on nuclear facilities and oil tankers. Israel has vowed never to allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons. Iran’s nuclear and military facilities have faced multiple disruptive attacks over the years, with Tehran often accusing Israel of orchestrating them.
On October 7th last year, Hamas, supported by Iran, launched the largest-scale attack on Israel in decades, sparking the Gaza War.
For the current Iranian regime, reconciling with Israel seems impossible.
Over the decades, Arab countries that once viewed Israel as an enemy have now normalized relations with Israel. However, Iran, a former close ally, has become irreconcilable enemies with Israel.
Responsibility Editor: Lian Shuhua