Iran–Israel relations

Iran and Israel have not maintained a formal diplomatic relationship with each other since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Beginning in the mid-1980s, the Iran–Israel proxy conflict has grown to largely dominate the atmosphere of Middle Eastern politics, with both countries' hostility escalating into open war in 2024, 2025, and 2026. The Iranian government of Ruhollah Khomeini severed all existing ties with Israel after seizing power from the Pahlavi dynasty, including by transferring the Embassy of Israel in Tehran to the Palestine Liberation Organization. As guided by the Islamic Revolution's ideology, Iran's foreign policy is primarily focused on destroying Israel and replacing it entirely with a Palestinian state. The Israeli government regards Iran as an existential threat, owing to the country's backing of various militant groups across the region. More recently, Iran's nuclear program has been the most significant source of tension between the two countries; Israel frequently mounts military and intelligence operations in Iran and has also assassinated Iranian nuclear scientists.

In 1947 and 1949, Iran joined 12 other countries in voting against the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine and Israel's admission to the United Nations, respectively. Nevertheless, it became the second Muslim-majority country (after Turkey) to recognize Israel's sovereignty in spite of the Arab–Israeli conflict. Following the 1953 Iranian coup d'état, which enabled the pro-Western Iranian king Mohammad Reza Pahlavi to consolidate his power against the government, Iran–Israel relations improved considerably. Although Khomeini openly denounced Israel upon deposing Pahlavi in 1979, the Iraqi invasion of Iran in 1980 laid the foundation for a covert relationship during the ensuing Iran–Iraq War.

The turn from cold peace to open hostility began in the early 1990s, shortly after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the defeat of Iraq in the Gulf War. Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin's government adopted a more aggressive posture on Iran, and Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made inflammatory statements against Israel. Other factors contributing to the escalation of tensions include the Iranian nuclear program, Iran's funding of Islamist groups such as Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hamas, and the Houthis, and Iran's involvement in attacks such as the 1992 Buenos Aires Israeli embassy bombing and the 1994 AMIA bombing, as well as Israeli threats of military action.

Iranian and Israeli organizations have been involved in direct military confrontations, such as in the 2006 Lebanon War. Iran and Israel have provided support for opposing factions in the Syrian and Yemeni civil wars and conducted cyberattacks and sabotage against each other's infrastructure, including attacks on nuclear facilities and oil tankers. Iran's proxy conflict with Saudi Arabia has led to an informal alliance between Israel and Arab states. In 2024, amid increasing regional tensions stemming from the Gaza war, Iran–Israel tensions escalated to a period of direct conflict; both carried out missile strikes on the other and Israel assassinated targets in Iran and Syria. In 2025, Israel carried out strikes against Iranian nuclear and military targets, sparking the 12 day long Iran–Israel war. In 2026, Israel and the United States launched a joint airstrike bombing campaign in Iran that is currently ongoing. As part of these strikes, Israel with U.S. support assassinated Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on 28 February 2026.