Relations between Iran and Israel touched a new low after the death of Hezbollah Chief Hassan Nasrallah in a shocking manner during an Israeli airstrike in Beirut on September 27, 2024. In retaliation, the Islamic Republic launched a salvo of about 200 ballistic missiles at Israeli defence targets on October 1, 2024. Thereafter, the Zionist Regime declared that its next target would be the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei! A social media post suggests that Iran, too, has prepared an Execution List of Israeli terrorists that features the names of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin ‘Bibi’ Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.

However, a close friendship was seen to have developed between Iran and Israel in the past. They joined hands to create troubles for a common enemy, namely Iraq, in the 1960s and the US was well aware of that! At that time, Israel engaged in a larger struggle against the Arab Rule; while Iran, under Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (commonly referred to in the Western World as Mohammad Reza Shah or just simply the Shah, the last Monarch of Iran; October 26, 1919 – July 27, 1980), saw Iraq as a direct threat to its security and regional ambitions. Hence, Israeli intelligence agency Mossad and SAVAK, the Secret Police of the Imperial State of Iran, decided to work together in order to strengthen the Kurdish rebels against Iraq!

It may be noted that Iran, Israel and Turkey formed a tripartite intelligence alliance, called Trident, through which the Jewish Nation shared intelligence with Iran and Turkey between 1956 and 1979 on a scale not seen since! It was considered one of Israel’s most far-reaching and comprehensive foreign policy accomplishments. Trident reportedly brought Iran and Israel closer. The Shah joined hands with Israel, keeping in mind not only the geopolitical interests of his country, but also the influence of the US on Israel. Interestingly, the US expressed serious concern over the Iran-Israel friendship, calling Shah’s regime a dictatorial one! However, the Iranian Monarch thought that the friendship with Israel would help his country to improve ties with the US.

Relations between Israel and Iran reached such a level in the mid-1960s that an office for a permanent Israeli delegation was opened in Tehran. The office also served as an Israeli Embassy in the Iranian capital. However, the bilateral relationship was complicated, too. As the Shah was well aware of the anti-Israel sentiment throughout the Arab World, he took care to handle the matter effectively. He became critical of Israel after the Third Arab-Israeli War that lasted just six days in 1967.

The friendship between Iran and Israel extended beyond the defence deal. Project Flower was one of the most important joint ventures. It was basically a multi-million-dollar secret initiative that began during the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. The project focused mainly on the development of a longer range Gabriel anti-ship missile and a future submarine-launched variant, and intended to reproduce a US-designed missile with Israeli-made parts that could be fitted with nuclear warheads! Under this project, Israel also sold surface-to-surface missiles to Iran in 1977. The following year, Iran supplied Israel with USD 280 million worth of oil as a down payment.

However, the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran greatly affected the regional political landscape, creating an anti-Israel sentiment in Iran overnight! Iran made an attempt to maintain cordial ties with Israel to a certain extent even after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (May 17, 1900 or September 24, 1902 – June 3, 1989) came to power. According to foreign policy experts, Iran sought Israel’s support to continue its war against Saddam Hussein‘s Iraq (1980-88). Israel, too, did not want to miss the opportunity to help Iran as Tel Aviv used to consider Iraq’s ambition to become a Regional, as well as Nuclear, Power as a serious threat! Hence, Tel Aviv agreed to supply weapons to Tehran. In return, the Ayatollah Khomeini Administration allowed many Iranian Jews to immigrate to Israel or the US.

Iran’s need for military assistance reached a critical point by the mid-1980s, as the war with Iraq destroyed much of Iran’s resources and the Iranian Economy, too, was on the brink of collapse. However, Israel benefited from the arms deal with Iran! According to a New York Times report, Israel secretly supplied Iran with 250 spare tires for the US-made F-4 fighter jets in 1980 amid the Iran-Iraq Conflict. However, Washington DC requested Tel Aviv not to supply weapons to Tehran until the Islamic Republic released 52 US diplomats (who were being held captive by Iran). Menachem Begin, the then Prime Minister of Israel, acceded to the US pressure and snapped defence deals with Iran. Israel was worried about its decision because there were approximately 60,000 Jews living in Iran at that time.

It may be noted that the period of close bilateral ties came to an abrupt end by the 1990s, and in the following decade, the Iran-Israel rivalry emerged as a defining feature of the regional landscape. Later, Iran adopted a strong anti-Israel approach and started backing organisations like Hamas and Hezbollah. Tehran supported these armed groups during the Israel-Hezbollah War in 2006 and the Israel-Hamas War in 2008. Together, they built a collective Axis of Resistance against the Zionist Regime.

Experts believe that a war between Iran and Israel could break out at any time, keeping in mind the current geopolitical landscape in West Asia!

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das