Iran’s direct attack on Israel on 13 April happened in an unprecedented manner. Israel, the Middle East, and the rest of the world can now get over the suspense. Sof-sof, ‘at last’ in Hebrew, is the best way to put this matter behind — the Iranian psychological warfare arrived not with a bang but with a thud.
For Israelis, the last weekend was tense – their usual religious and family rendezvous over the Friday Shabbat meal and quiet Saturday morning were spent in anxiety about how and when Iran would attack Israel. Israel’s leadership and army were on high alert, and so was its ally, the United States. Ordinary Israelis were uncertain about stocking water, first aid, torches, generators, and radios, as suggested by the security agencies. After all, Iran had threatened to attack Israel many times in the past six months, and its immediate protégé, Hezbollah from Lebanon, has been shooting recklessly in the north of Israel.
Days before the attack
The evening before the attack, the Israeli army declared new emergency guidelines, shut down all educational and school activities, restricted outdoor gatherings nationwide, and advised people to stay indoors. But Israelis were out on the streets in lakhs.
Two days before the Iranian attack, Israeli news channels had carried an investigative show about Israeli negotiators working on a hostage deal for the past two months. The report revealed that there has been a ‘cold indifference’ and lack of empathy for the hostages among the top leadership of Israel, particularly Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Families of the hostages have, for some time now, alleged that the Netanyahu government hasn’t prioritised the hostage deal. In the telecast report, two team members (who spoke anonymously) said that Netanyahu was giving them unreasonable conditions to negotiate with Hamas, like demanding list of all living hostages at one stage. On record in the report, Nadav Argaman, former head of Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence agency, spoke at length about why hostages may not return, the war in Gaza will continue for years, and Israel will be an isolated nation because of Netanyahu’s compromised politics. Calling upon the people to protest, he said the time was not running out; it ran out on the hostages. All this information over national television depressed the morale of the Israelis, much worse than the rhetoric of Iranian ayatollahs. Having the ill intentions of Iran in mind, lakhs of people still went out to protest against the government on Saturday evening before Iran attacked.
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Going back decades
Hostility between Iran and Israel has existed since the Iranian Revolution of 1979. The ideologically driven radicals of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have been trying to capitalise on the Palestinian cause for decades. The issue was also flagged earlier by many autocratic regimes, dictators, and religious fanatics of the region, from Saddam Hussein to Osama Bin Laden. When Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, Iranian officials were prompt to distance Iran from the war to avoid any direct blame for the gruesome killings, rapes and abductions of Israeli civilians.
Some weeks later, Ramazan Sharif, spokesperson for IRGC, claimed that the 7 October attack on Israel was revenge for the assassination of Iranian major general Qasem Soleimani by an American drone in 2020. After receiving backlash from around the world, he had to withdraw his statement. Iranians want the rhetoric of the Palestinian issue without putting much into it. Netanyahu, too, has been obsessed with Iran for over a decade, having spoken against the Iranian nuclear programme and made matters worse. Alarmed at the Iranian appropriation of the Palestinian national movement, the Palestinian Authority issued a statement on 3 April 2024, saying it will not allow “our sacred cause and the blood of our people to be exploited” by Iran. The current rulers of Iran will continue to exploit the Palestinian issue if the occupation persists at the cost of a viable Palestinian state, not so much because it cares for the Palestinian people (majority of whom are Sunni Muslims in any case), but because it gives them ready fodder for anti-Americanism, anti-Israelism, and anti-Semitism sentiments.
Relief among Israelis
After the Iranian attack, there is considerable relief among Israelis. First, for Israelis, the Iranian threats are over now, done and dusted. A second reason is that Israel provided firm security to the people who, not long ago, felt exposed and failed by the state machinery on 7 October. A third reason for relief is that solid and old allies of Israel like America, France, and UK came for quick assistance, keeping aside their strong criticism of Israeli policies in Gaza. Moreover, it was reassuring for Israelis to find out that some new allies for Israeli security emerged from the region — Jordan, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Egypt, who assisted Israel against Iran. It is not surprising that the Hebrew University of Jerusalem just found out that 74 per cent of Israelis oppose a counterattack on Iran; the majority of people think Israel should not give another reason to Iran for escalation and focus on the hostage deal and conclusion of the war in Gaza.
Strategically speaking, it is much in favour of Israel to work with its Western allies and regional moderate Arab states to counter Iran in the long term. Besides some shock to its prestige, self-esteem, and national pride that the masculine-macho politicians usually shed blood for, Israel didn’t suffer much due to the Iranian attack. A better sense prevails among ordinary Israelis, who are more worried about and are up for a good fight against Netanyahu’s theatrics of war.
Dr Khinvraj Jangid writes from Tel Aviv. He is Associate Professor and Director, Centre for Israel Studies, Jindal School of International Affairs, OP Jindal Global University, Sonipat. He is visiting faculty at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel. Views are personal.
(Edited by Humra Laeeq)
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