Having lingered in a bomb shelter for approximately 50 hours over the last 7 days, I’ve had time to ponder the Israel/Iran war. My thoughts have covered a spectrum of emotions — from admiration of the remarkable resilience and humanity of the huddled shelter occupants, to pride in the proficiency of the Israeli air force, to deep anxiety about the ultimate success of the operation. Another factor that has occupied my thoughts is the naivete/ignorance of some Americans about the impetus for this war.

Numbers of friends and relatives (to say nothing of American politicians and political influencers) have expressed amazement as to why Israel would launch a violent attack on a nearby nation of 90 million people when sure to provoke mass retaliation. Add to their puzzlement another element. Polls indicate that a decisive majority of Israelis support the assault on Iran even though the Israeli public is already paying a high price (12 dead, 1250 injured, and 2300 displaced) with a heavier toll to come. And the eventual outcome of the war is still quite uncertain.

To understand the Israeli impetus for this war, consider some history regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran. Ever since its founding in 1979, the regime of the ayatollahs has been a theocracy grounded in an extreme brand of Shiite religious ideology intolerant of all non-believers. The ayatollahs’ radical agenda applied not only to Iran and Iranians, but was intended to be spread throughout the middle east.

From the outset, the ayatollahs were obsessed with Israel as a Jewish cancer to be extirpated at all cost. The prevalent slogan was always “Death to Israel” the little satan (along with “Death to America,” the great satan). The Islamic republic has zero interest in co-existence between Jews and Palestinians or in a 2-state solution to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.

The ayatollahs’ regime has employed multiple tactics in its quest to destroy Israel. The Iranians have long sought to develop a nuclear weapons program. Since the early 2,000’s, Iran has built uranium enrichment facilities and worked on design of a nuclear warhead. President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, who served between 2005 and 2013, regarded destruction of Israel as a one atomic bomb operation because the Jewish population was so concentrated in the Tel Aviv environs. While Iran did sign a 2015 “deal” to suspend such enrichment, Iran’s violations, cheating, and non-cooperation with inspectors prompted cancellation of the deal by the first Trump administration. In the meantime, Iran has managed to accumulate a stockpile of approximately 440 kilograms of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade – enough for 10 nuclear weapons.

Beyond nuclear weaponry, Iran has striven for decades to create a ring of fire around Israel. The elite Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has promoted proxy terrorist entities in Iraq (Shiite militias), Lebanon (Hezbollah militia), Syria (supporting Assad’s regime as a helpful conduit to Hezbollah), Yemen (Houtis) and Gaza (Hamas and Islamic Jihad). Iran’s intensive promotion of terrorists dedicated to uprooting the Jews of Israel culminated in the Hamas atrocities of October 7, 2023, including the massacre of 360 Israeli youth attending a music festival. Starting October 8, 2023, Iran’s proxy Hezbollah cooperated with Hamas and rained missiles into northern Israel forcing the evacuation and near abandonment of northeast Israeli cities like Kiryat Shmona and Metulla. During 2025, Iran has provided massive sums and smuggled weaponry to Hezbollah to revitalize that Shiite militia’s depleted supply of missiles, rockets, and drones. Hezbollah is currently bombarding Israeli targets in Haifa and the north.

Beyond the proxy militia attacks, the ayatollahs’ regime has initiated its own violent attacks aimed at destroying Israel. On April 13, 2024, Iran launched 320 projectiles (including ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and suicide drones) aimed at Israel. On October 1, 2024, another 200 missiles were dispatched. Even though Iran’s missile supplies were somewhat depleted during the 12-day war of June 2025, Iran has replenished its ballistic missile stockpile and built multiple underground storage and launch sites. A major impetus for Israel’s current attack is to find and destroy those missile stockpiles, estimated at the war’s outset to total 2500 missiles.

The decisive degradation of Iran’s ballistic missile supply has existential implications. Keep in mind that each newly manufactured Iranian missile is dozens of feet in length and carries thousands of pounds of explosives. Each direct hit produces shock waves destroying buildings for blocks around. Defense experts have noted that if Iran launches a simultaneous barrage of 100 such projectiles, even Israel’s sophisticated anti-missile apparatus cannot fully cope. The potential thus exists for the penetration of Iran’s ballistic missiles to create the same kind of expansive devastation as a small nuclear blast. I.e., Iran’s extensive setup of ballistic missiles in underground launch facilities poses an existential threat to Israel.

It is too early to know how successful Israel will be in neutralizing the looming threat of Iran’s missile stockpile. Nor can we know whether Khameini’s successor as Supreme Leader will be more reconciled to Israel’s existence. My point here is simply to dispel the disingenuous notion that Israel was launching an unprovoked attack on an unoffending neighboring country.

I have not mentioned the ayatollahs’ heinous conduct toward the Iranian people themselves – the oppression of women, the hanging of gay men in public squares, and the recent slaughter of many thousands of civilian demonstrators. Those factors cannot justify Israel’s attack. But the hideous nature of the Iranian regime ought to at least be in the back of the minds of those hastening to condemn Israel’s current strike against the IRGC.

I can understand American upset over Donald Trump’s arrogation of unilateral authority to launch wars. The nature and timing of American involvement in confrontation with Iran are legitimate issues. My annoyance is focused on some Americans’ inability to grasp why Israel would risk the current assault on the abominable regime of the ayatollahs. Try viewing it as self-defense.

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)