Iran's Ideological Hostility Against Israel

Iran, as a key country in the Middle East, has a significant role in shaping the power politics in the region. Tehran’s continuing effort to attain nuclear weapons and establish, maintain, and strengthen its alliances in the region by supporting terrorist organizations, are the main characteristics of this struggle. All these actions are directed toward one purpose: to threaten and ultimately eliminate Israel, thereby allowing Iran to become the region’s major power. Since the two nations do not share a border and as there is no conflict in strategic economic interest between them, rational claims cannot be used to justify Iran’s official hostility against Israel in the post-revolutionary era. Iran’s aggressive approach against Israel can only be understood from the ideological hostility developed by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder and spiritual leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran.