Israeli PM Netanyahu Targets Iran, Eyes Legacy Shift Amid War \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has launched an unprecedented military operation against Iran’s nuclear program. The move follows years of threats and escalating regional tensions after Hamas’ 2023 attacks. With U.S. President Trump offering minimal resistance, Netanyahu’s legacy now hinges on the operation’s success.
Quick Looks
- Netanyahu initiates a direct military campaign against Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.
- Years of threats culminate in a calculated strike following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.
- Iran’s regional allies have been significantly weakened by Israel in the past year.
- U.S. President Donald Trump has supported the campaign, offering minimal opposition.
- Netanyahu hopes success will restore his legacy after the catastrophic 2023 attacks.
- Early gains include killing senior Iranian military officials and airstrike successes.
- Domestic political support is currently strong but could shift if Israeli casualties mount.
- Netanyahu’s long-standing warnings about Iran’s nuclear threat frame this as a historic mission.
Deep Look
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has launched what may be the most ambitious—and politically consequential—military campaign of his storied career: a direct and sustained offensive targeting Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. This mission, years in the making, reflects not only Netanyahu’s long-standing view of Iran as Israel’s most dangerous enemy but also his determination to reshape both the strategic landscape of the Middle East and his own political legacy.
Netanyahu has been warning the world about Iran’s nuclear ambitions since the 1990s, long before his current tenure as Israel’s longest-serving prime minister. Throughout the decades, he has portrayed a nuclear-armed Iran as an existential threat to Israel and a destabilizing force for the entire region. His speeches at the United Nations, especially the 2012 cartoon bomb diagram that illustrated Iran’s nuclear progress, became symbolic of his relentless campaign. Despite mockery from critics, his message remained clear and unwavering: Israel would never allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon.
Now, for the first time, Netanyahu has moved beyond rhetoric. In what is being described as a historic shift in Israel’s defense doctrine, the Israeli military has begun striking Iranian nuclear and military facilities in an open-ended offensive. The move signals that Netanyahu believes the window to act is now—or never.
This aggressive pivot has been made possible by several converging factors. Over the past year, Israel has significantly weakened Iran’s regional allies. The 2023 war in Gaza, triggered by Hamas’ devastating Oct. 7 attacks, resulted in massive destruction of the militant group’s infrastructure. Simultaneously, Israel launched heavy airstrikes on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon and intervened in Syria, damaging the remnants of the Assad regime. According to Israeli intelligence sources, much of the Iranian-backed “Axis of Resistance” has been left fragmented and militarily diminished.
These regional victories, though costly, cleared the path for Israel to focus on the core threat: Tehran itself. With Iranian proxies degraded and domestic criticism temporarily muted by security concerns, Netanyahu seized the moment.
Crucially, U.S. President Donald Trump—returning to office with a revived agenda—offered little resistance. Although Trump had initially resumed talks with Iran in a bid to craft a new nuclear deal, frustrations over Tehran’s intransigence reportedly shifted his stance. When informed of Israel’s military plans, Trump neither objected nor intervened, essentially giving Israel the diplomatic cover it needed to act decisively.
Initial reports from Israeli military sources suggest a strong start. Dozens of Iranian sites have been hit, including key facilities associated with uranium enrichment and military research. High-ranking officers in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps have reportedly been killed. However, independent verification remains limited, and the full extent of the damage to Iran’s nuclear infrastructure is unclear.
Netanyahu is currently enjoying a rare moment of political unity. Even opposition leaders, who until last week were mobilizing to oust him, have voiced support for the operation. The Israeli public, often critical of Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza and domestic corruption scandals, appears—for now—reunited behind the banner of national security.
Still, the tide could shift quickly. Prolonged missile barrages from Iran, civilian casualties, or high-profile military failures—such as an Israeli pilot being captured or a nuclear facility proving untouched—could reverse public sentiment overnight. Israelis, already weary from nearly two years of war with Hamas, may be unwilling to support a prolonged conflict with a far larger and more dangerous adversary.
Further complicating matters is Netanyahu’s increasingly bold rhetoric, which some see as an indication he may seek not just to degrade Iran’s nuclear program, but also to push for regime change in Tehran. Such ambitions, while popular among some Israeli hardliners and neoconservatives in Washington, are fraught with risk. History is replete with failed attempts at externally driven regime change in the Middle East, and Iran—despite internal unrest—remains a formidable state with a deeply entrenched theocracy and strong security forces.
Yet for Netanyahu, the stakes are deeply personal. His reputation was severely damaged by the failures of October 7, when Hamas breached Israeli borders in the deadliest attack in the nation’s history. Critics called it a massive intelligence and security failure, one that occurred on Netanyahu’s watch after years of political infighting and controversial judicial reforms that weakened Israel’s internal cohesion.
By striking Iran, Netanyahu sees a chance to reclaim his legacy—not as the leader who presided over Israel’s darkest hour, but as the man who took bold action to save his country from nuclear annihilation. It is a narrative he has been building for decades, and one that he is now attempting to make real through force of arms.
Whether history remembers Netanyahu as a visionary strategist or a reckless gambler may well depend on what happens next in the skies over Iran—and in the cities and bunkers of Israel.
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