Greater Israel: What’s Next After Iran?… Turkey? Pakistan?

As the US-Israel offensive against Iran reshapes the Middle East, new alliances are forming between Muslim-majority states such as Turkey, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia in response to Bibi’s ‘Greater Israel’ ambitions.

The Middle East has turned into a site of unprecedented chaos thanks to the US and Israel launching a direct offensive against Iran. The attacks that started on 28th February 2026 are still going on, with many key members of the top leadership of Iran (including the Supreme Leader) having been martyred. Trump’s ultimate aim is unknown to almost everyone – including himself – as he flips between ending Iran’s nuclear ambitions, ‘protecting the US from imminent Iranian threats’ (which are geographically almost impossible), protecting women’s rights, and ‘removing a tyrant.’ However, Bibi Netanyahu, who has been calling for the dismantling of Iran’s non-existent nuclear program since the 90s, is following through with Israel’s ultimate aim: Creating Greater Israel.

The uninitiated might think that Iran is the last bone of contention for Israel, but that’s not the case. Both American and Israeli officials are now explicitly declaring the ‘Muslim Brotherhood/Islam’ a threat to peace and stability in the region. It is pretty evident from their conversations that Israel will not stop at Iran; rather, it needs to eliminate/suppress any threat that will hinder it in completely taking over the ‘Promised Land’ of Greater Israel.

Revival of the Muslim Brotherhood

The Muslim Brotherhood ideology includes promoting Islamic laws and morals and engaging society through offering social services. It is based on bringing political and social reforms throughout the Muslim world to create a firm Islamic community. The three main pillars of Muslim Brotherhood ideology include political independence, cultural resistance to the hostile Western forces, and protection of the Islamic identity. As of today, Qatar, Turkey, and Pakistan are considered to be the major proponents of this ideology.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt initially favoured the idea of creating a solid Muslim Brotherhood – something that should come naturally to Islamic States, like an Islamic NATO – but later on banned it in their efforts to normalise relations with Israel – either for financial gains or to protect their countries from US-Israel interventions (read Iraq, Syria, Lebanon…).

However, Israel’s full invasion of Gaza since October 2023 has slightly altered these traditional dynamics. Muslim nations that were just a step away from recognising Israel, like Saudi Arabia, have now taken a step back; instead, those that had already recognised Israel, i.e., Turkey, broke ties with it because the Turkish masses staunchly support the innocent people of Gaza. Ever since the genocide started, an informal coalition of like-minded Muslim countries has been developing to stand against Israeli atrocities and hegemonic actions in the Middle East.

In September 2025, Israel attacked Qatar, accusing it of hosting and providing safe havens to Hamas leaders in its territory. In the meantime, the Trump 2.0 administration propagated its conservative policies throughout the world, including the Middle East, with ideas of extracting troops from the region. The unreliability of the US and Israel’s extremely offensive behaviour compelled the Gulf States to search for alternatives for their security and survival. The Muslim Brotherhood re-emerged here. States such as Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, etc., began to draw closer to one another.

Saudi Arabia signed a strategic defence pact with Pakistan in September 2025 that clearly stated that any attack on one country would be regarded as an attack on the other. The Pakistan-Turkey military alliance in the maritime sector and airborne warfare is already at its zenith. Similarly, Pakistan and Egypt entered into several accords to enhance intelligence exchange and counterterrorism activities in January 2026. Analysts are referring to these alignments as the creation of an Islamic NATO. Yet, nations such as the UAE remain opposed to this concept and are increasingly warming up to Israel as a counter to the rising pan-Islamism in the Middle East.

Israel is forming a counter-group to encircle Muslim states in response to the ever-growing links between Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Pakistan. By December 2025, a trilateral cooperation agreement between Israel, Greece, and Cyprus was signed in order to improve the coordination of maritime and aviation safety. This trilateral grouping is created to encircle Turkey in the Middle East. Both Greece and Cyprus have a dispute with Turkey in the Mediterranean. This group is termed by analysts as a ‘Mediterranean NATO.’ Similarly, Israel formally recognised Somaliland, a separatist, unrecognised territorial enclave within Somalia, in December 2025. Muslim nations, such as Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, and Pakistan, criticised this step by Israel and expressed complete support for Somalia.

In February 2026, Israeli PM Netanyahu, just two days before Indian PM Modi visited Israel, stated plans to form a new regional bloc and framed the Middle East as divided into ‘radical Sunni and Shia’ axes. He suggested a “hexagon of alliances,” which he claimed would include Israel, India, Greece, Cyprus, and other unspecified Arab, African, and Asian nations. He said that they would join forces to fight together against what he termed “radical” opponents. He made it clear that ‘the goal is to establish an axis of nations that share our perspective on the realities, challenges, and objectives in opposition to the radical axes, including the radical Shia axis, which we have attacked severely, as well as the growing radical Sunni axis’.

This is an admission of Bibi’s real goals: Iran is considered to be the last Shia entity from the radical Shia axis, and is already under heavy attack. However, the emerging friendships between Pakistan, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia are what will now become the “radical Sunni axis”. It is glaringly obvious: Any Muslim-majority country that does not completely submit to the US and Israel will be labelled a ‘radical Islamic country’ that threatens the Western principles of ‘democracy and freedom’.

Is Turkey the New Iran?

“Neither the United States nor Israel has the capacity to impose a unilateral solution in the Middle East” (Zbigniew Brzezinski)

“Neither the United States nor Israel has the capacity to impose a unilateral solution in the Middle East” (Zbigniew Brzezinski)

Among the major proponents of the Muslim Brotherhood, Turkey is considered to be one of the most powerful Muslim nations with respect to defense and security. Being a NATO member, Turkey plays a leading role in the southern flank of the alliance. For the US, Turkey provides counterterrorism assistance in the Middle East. For the EU, Turkey provides migration immunity, acting as a buffer. For China, Turkey provides East-West connectivity, while its close relations with the Russian Federation, being a NATO member, provide significant leverage to Russia in the Mediterranean. For Gulf States, Turkey presents a suitable alternative to the US for defence acquisitions. From economic to military contacts, Turkey has increased its sphere of influence in the past few years. Turkey has a sizable military presence in the conquered area of Cyprus, a base in Qatar, and a large military presence in Libya and Somalia.

In addition, the reduced role of Russia in the Middle East due to it being occupied by the West-imposed Ukraine conflict and increasing economic turmoil in Iran has ensured a greater role for Turkey in the region. Moreover, Turkey’s active military intervention in Syria to protect its southern borders and growing ties with its new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, further add to the layer. This elevation of Ankara’s role in the region has raised alarms in Israeli strategic circles. “A new Turkish threat is emerging…” former Israeli PM Naftali observed in February 2026. “And from here I caution: Turkey is the new Iran. With his complex and risky approach, Erdoğan aims to surround Israel.” He also accused Turkey of “trying to flip Saudi Arabia against Israel and establish a hostile Sunni axis with nuclear Pakistan and create a new choke ring with Syria and Gaza.”

On March 2, 2026, former Turkish politician Suat Kinikligolu wrote, “Israel requires a consistent external threat to maintain its internal unity and survival. A new foe is required if Iran ceases to pose a threat. We are that foe.” This shows that Turkey would be the immediate target of Israel once the Iranian matter is resolved. However, there are sharp differences between Turkey and Iran, whereby it would not be as easy for Israel to target Turkey as it targeted Gaza, Lebanon, or Iran. Türkiye is ranked among the 10 best military forces in the world based on the Global Firepower (GFP) index.

The same is the case with Pakistan – rather, it is infinitely trickier – since Pakistan has extremely competent armed forces and nuclear capabilities. Despite Bibi’s statements (and pressure on the US) from the 90s to dismantle the ‘dangerous nuclear programs’ in Pakistan, the West has been unable to get its hands on them thus far. Therefore, experts are of the view that it would be difficult for Israel to directly attack Turkey and Pakistan; rather, Israel would most probably pursue an indirect strategy by creating chaos at their borders and supporting various anti-Turkey and anti-Pakistan movements in the region. This is further evidenced by the suspicious timing of the increased suicide attacks in Pakistan, leading to a Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict that started just before the attack on Iran, and by the increased love between Modi and Bibi that has suddenly intensified.

The US and Israel are now altering the status quo of the Middle East, whereby threats are not eliminated but rather relocated, which serves their interests in the region. From Gaza to Iran, one thing is clear: neither anti-American nor anti-Israel administrations have the right to occupy space in the Middle East. The official statements and practical steps taken by Israel are evidence that their next target after Iran would be the Islamic Republic of Turkey and/or Pakistan. However, Turkey’s diplomatic, economic, and cultural significance and Turkey and Pakistan’s military prowess are significantly deterring Israelis from launching any direct misadventure against it at the moment.

Whether by employing non-state proxies, attacking/invading countries openly, or even by establishing alliances, one thing is for certain: Israel is determined to crush any Muslim country that has the power to oppose it – and it has no qualms about using the US to do so.

Aleena Im is an independent researcher and writer and is interested in international relations and current affairs

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