For decades, Israel has considered the Islamic Republic to be its greatest adversary. Several governments, led by both the left-wing Labor Party and the right-wing Likud Party, have centered their foreign policies around the threats from Iran, ranging from its nuclear program to its creation of a network of influence across the Middle East. Israel has fought Iranian proxies on two borders—a thirty-four-day war with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006 and sporadic tensions with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad since the 1990s.
Four decades after Iran’s revolution, Israel’s concerns included:
- Increasingly accurate ballistic missiles with ranges up to 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) or more
- Drones—capable of airstrikes, suicide missions and reconnaissance—for domestic use as well as export to Middle East allies and Russia
- Arming, training, and funding proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen
- Military deployments in Syria
- Cyberattacks on the Israeli government, infrastructure and private businesses
- Plots to kill or kidnap Israeli citizens abroad and attack cargo ships linked to Israel
Since the 1990s, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s longest serving leader, has warned about the existential threat from Iran’s nuclear program. Israel’s goal has been to “thwart” its nuclear advances and “ensure Israel’s military superiority in the region,” he told lawmakers as he started his sixth term in December 2022.
Since 2013, Israel has gradually expanded the shadow war with Iran and its network of proxies. It’s dubbed the mabam—or “war between the wars”—in Hebrew. Israel reportedly conducted three operations in Syria the first year. “Our average today is more than one a week, and we crossed 52 operations in 2022,” Kohavi said in January 2023.
Netanyahu has long campaigned against the nuclear deal brokered between Iran and the world’s six major powers in 2015. Netanyahu called the deal a “historic mistake” that failed to curb Iran’s nuclear program. President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the deal in 2018; Iran began breaching its obligations 14 months later. The Biden administration launched new diplomacy in April 2021 to get both the U.S. and Iran back into compliance with their obligations in the deal. But talks deadlocked in August 2022.
In 2021, Israel’s top military official announced that funding and preparations for an attack on Iran’s nuclear sites had “dramatically accelerated.” “It’s a very complicated job, with much more intelligence, much more operational capabilities, much more armaments,” Lt. Gen. Aviv Kohavi, then the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief of staff, revealed in September. Israel also accelerated the pace and scope of military exercises:
- May 2022: For the first time, the Israeli Air Force conducted large-scale maneuvers simulating an attack on Iran’s nuclear sites.
- November 2022: Israeli and U.S. forces conducted a three-day air force exercise that simulated an attack on Iran’s nuclear sites.
- January 2023: Israeli F-35 stealth fighters participated in drills with six U.S. F-15 fighters. The goal was to simulate attacks deep into enemy territory.
- January 2023: Israeli and U.S. forces conducted a four-day exercise in the largest joint military exercise to date. The live-fire drill included 42 Israeli aircraft and 100 U.S. fighters, bombers and other warplanes as well as a U.S. carrier strike group. Some 6,400 U.S. personnel and more than 1,100 Israeli personnel were involved.
- February 2023: Israeli and U.S. forces conducted a joint exercise called "Juniper Falcon" to strengthen coordination in several fields, including aerial defense and cyber warfare.
- February 2023: Israeli and U.S. forces conducted a ten-day exercise in Israel called “Intrepid Maven 23.2” to enhance collaboration. The drill included 200 Marines and sailors.
- March 2023: The Israeli and U.S. air forces conducted a two-week drill in Nevada called “Red Flag” to enhance collaboration in several areas, including attack operations and refueling. Nearly 100 aircraft would take off twice a day during the drill, the U.S. Air Force said.
- May-June 2023: The IDF conducted a two-week drill in Israel called “Firm Hand” to simulate combat on multiple fronts at one time. The exercise included land, sea, air, and cyber components and reportedly consisted of tens of thousands of soldiers.
- July 2023: The Israeli and U.S. air forces conducted a joint exercise called “Juniper Oak” to boost attack capabilities on “strategic targets in the depth.” They also simulated “achieving aerial superiority” and “cyber defense against a variety of threats,” according to the IDF.
- July-August 2023: The Israeli Navy and the U.S. Navy Fifth Fleet conducted a two-week maritime drill in Haifa, Israel to enhance “cooperation and operational readiness.” The annual exercise included more than 50 U.S. troops and focused on “explosive ordnance disposal, mine countermeasures, maritime and global health management, underwater construction, maritime surveillance and vessel boarding procedures.”
Since 2010, Israel has been widely linked to a least a dozen attacks—involving cyber, covert operations, and assassinations—on Iran’s nuclear program. Jerusalem and Tehran are nearly 1,000 miles apart. Yet Israel has reportedly penetrated deep into Iranian territory and its most secure facilities in two waves. The first wave, mainly cyberattacks and assassinations, was between 2010 and 2012 before the launch of nuclear diplomacy with Iran. The second began in 2018 and has included a Mossad raid, sabotage and an assassination.
In January 2023, the mounting tensions were reflected in the largest ever joint U.S.-Israeli military exercise. It was carried out by land, sea and air over four days. “Juniper Oak 23,” a live-fire drill, included 42 Israeli aircraft and 100 U.S. fighters, bombers and other warplanes as well as a U.S. carrier strike group. “We know how to defend,” Gen. Herzi Halevi, the new chief of staff of Israel's military, said on January 26. “But when someone attacks you, the best defense is to attack him back, so it is offensive capabilities, and we shape it in order to bring a very clear message to Iran: if Iran makes mistakes, offense capabilities are getting ready.” Some 6,400 U.S. personnel and 1,100 Israeli personnel participated. “The scale of the exercise is relevant to a whole range of scenarios, and Iran may draw certain inferences from that,” a U.S. official told NBC News. The exercise also deployed two KC-46 air refueling tankers, which can be used to support a long-range bombing mission.
In early 2023, U.S. and Israeli officials estimated Iran had not yet made the political decision to produce the world’s deadliest weapon. In January, Kohavi claimed that Iran already had enough uranium that, if enriched further, could fuel four nuclear weapons—three with 20 enriched uranium and one with 60 percent enriched uranium. (The usual level of uranium enrichment for a bomb is 90 percent.) Even if Tehran did opt to weaponize its technological advances, it would need up to a year, and possibly two, to complete the multiple steps required to assemble a bomb and then marry the warhead to a missile delivery system.
In June 2023, Israeli outlet Ynet News reported that the IDF had formed a new intelligence unit to prepare for potential hostilities with Iran. The 30-soldier unit, called Branch 54, was responsible for intelligence collection on the IRGC and “providing the military with the knowledge infrastructure regarding Iranian military capabilities and strategic systems under their control,” an intelligence official said. It was “engaged in researching the elements of control in Iran from the senior level down to the operators at the frontlines.” Another official said that the branch had already “doubled the target bank in Iran, regardless of nuclear facilities.”
The escalating tensions since the 1979 revolution are in stark contrast to the warm ties between Israel and Iran during the monarchy. For decades, Iran sold oil to Israel. Both had close ties to the United States and opposed Soviet expansion in the Middle East. Israel had a de facto embassy in Tehran, while Iran had a secret diplomatic mission in Israel. Iran broke off relations after the ouster of the shah and turned the embassy over to the Palestinian Liberation Organization. Tensions heightened after Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in 1982, when Iran dispatched some 2,000 Revolutionary Guards to Lebanon to foster the creation of Hezbollah.
The following are key remarks by Israeli military and political officials on the threats from since 2022.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (2022- )
In remarks on June 13, 2023: “More than 90 percent of our security issues stem from Iran and her [proxies].”
“Our position is clear: Israel will not be bound by any deal with Iran and will continue to defend itself.”
In remarks on May 9, 2023: “It’s clear that 95 percent of Israel’s security problems come from Iran.”
“We are dealing with an attempt by Iran to start a multi-front campaign against us. I instructed the IDF and security forces to be prepared for this fight. … If we need to, we will.”
“Our principle is clear: Whoever harms us, we will strike at them and with great force. Our long arm will reach every terrorist at a time and place of our choosing.”
“We are in the midst of a campaign. We are prepared for all possibilities. I suggest that our enemies not test us.”
In remarks at a national security conference on Feb. 21, 2023: “The only thing that has ever stopped rogue nations from developing nuclear weapons is a credible military threat or a credible military action.”
“You can couple that with crippling economic sanctions, but that's not a sufficient condition.”
“A necessary condition and often a sufficient condition is credible military action. The longer you wait, the harder that becomes. We’ve waited very long.”
In remarks with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Jan. 30, 2023: “Your visit comes at an important time. It’s a time where many in the international community – I would say most of the international community – have seen the true face of Iran. They’ve seen the barbarism of this regime against its own people. They’ve seen how it exports aggression beyond its border and beyond the Middle East, and I think there is a common consensus that this regime must not acquire nuclear weapons.
We’ve had very good discussions on forging a common policy on trying to work together to thwart the danger. I can repeat again something that you’ve heard me say many times: Our policy, and my policy, is to do everything within Israel’s power to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them. And that will remain so. But obviously, the fact that we and the United States are working together is something that is important for this common goal as well.”
During the first meeting of the new cabinet on Jan. 3, 2023: The government will “work more vigorously to prevent Iranian-military entrenchment in Syria and elsewhere.”
In an interview with Al Arabiya on Dec. 19, 2022: “The problem with Iran and its proxies is that they have a completely different vision. They want to stop this progress [countries normalizing ties with Israel]. They want to dominate the Middle East, if not conquer it outright. They openly say they want to annihilate Israel. So, you know, obviously you may have a tactical agreement on the agenda on the Lebanese maritime question, but you can't really make it. What kind of an agreement would I make with Iran? The method of our decapitation? How we commit suicide? How we allow them to have a nuclear arsenal that will threaten all of us? That's not an agreement.”
President Isaac Herzog (2021-)
In remarks to Congress on July 19, 2023: “Israel and the United States must act forcefully together to prevent Iran‘s fundamental threat to international security.”
“Perhaps the greatest challenge Israel and the United States face at this time together is the Iranian nuclear program.”
“Let there be no doubt Iran does not strive to attain nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, Iran is building nuclear capabilities that pose a threat to the stability of the Middle East and beyond.”
“[Iran] together with its proxies throughout the Middle East, is aiming and working towards destroying the State of Israel, killing the Jews and challenging the entire world.”
“The entire free world allowing Iran to become a nuclear threshold state, whether by omission or by diplomatic commission, is unacceptable.”
“Allowing Iran to become a nuclear threshold state – whether by omission or by diplomatic commission – is unacceptable. The world cannot remain indifferent to the Iranian regime’s call to wipe Israel off the map. Tolerating this call and Iran’s measures to realize it, is an inexcusable moral collapse.”
“Backed by the free world, Israel and the United States must act forcefully together to prevent Iran’s fundamental threat to international security. I am here to reiterate what every Israeli leader has declared for decades: the State of Israel is determined to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapon capabilities.”
During a press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels on Jan. 26, 2023: “The radical Iranian regime is executing innocent citizens at home, launching attacks and undermining stability across the Middle East, spreading arms, death and terror in Europe, in Ukraine especially, and around the world, and continuing its belligerent pursuit of nuclear weapons on its quest for regional and world domination.”
“With Iran tightening its hold on European soil, the illusion of distance can no longer hold. NATO must take the strongest possible stance against the Iranian regime, including through economic, legal, and political sanctions, and credible military deterrence.”
Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog (2021-)
During an interview with VOA on Feb. 14, 2023:
Question: When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took office in December [2022], he said Israel is determined to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Just over 10 years ago, he literally drew a red line at Iran getting 90% of the way to having sufficient weapons-grade material to make a nuclear bomb. Why has Netanyahu's position on this issue shifted over time?
Herzog: So, Israel's position and Prime Minister Netanyahu’s position on this issue has not shifted, has not changed. There is a broad consensus in Israel. Mr. Netanyahu and previous prime ministers made it clear that Israel is determined to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear capabilities or nuclear weapons.
But on the way to acquiring weapons, there are all sorts of thresholds that we would like to prevent. And one of them was portrayed by Mr. Netanyahu in the U.N. about a decade ago, where he drew a line of Iran acquiring one bomb's worth of 20% enriched material [which would represent 90% of the process of making bomb-grade material]. And by the way, the Iranians respected that, and did not cross that line until 2021. I think it should be understood by everybody that for Israel, this is a threat of existential dimension, a strategic threat. Israel is determined to prevent Iran from acquiring the capability to become a nuclear-armed state.
Question: The Biden administration has said it believes Iran is several weeks away from having enough material to make a bomb, and they've said that Iran has been at this level for more than a year. What is Israel's view of the timeline?
Herzog: When we talk about Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, there are two major elements. One is the fissile material itself, the enrichment. And the other one is weaponization. When it comes to the fissile material, as the U.S. administration has indicated, and we agree, the timeline is such that Iran within weeks could acquire one bomb's worth of military grade fissile material. And that is of concern, of course, to everybody. When you talk about weaponization, it's a longer timeline. We have to address both dimensions — we cannot focus just on one and not on the other.
Question: Why is it that Iran seems to have stayed at this level of being a few weeks away from enough fissile material for so long?
Herzog: Because I think the Iranians realize there are consequences to crossing certain thresholds, if they go to military-grade enrichment. And they are not far away. They are enriching to 60 percent, which is one notch below [weapons grade]. But they realize that if they cross that threshold, then there will be consequences. Certainly, Israel is not going to be indifferent to such a development. And I dare say, also, the United States will probably respond to that.
….
Question: With the U.S. saying that the JCPOA talks are off the table, what is the Plan B for the United States and Israel to prevent Iran from getting even closer to a nuclear weapon capability?
Herzog: We are looking at a holistic strategy, which encompasses all dimensions of Iranian activities, including in the nuclear field, in the regional field, the cooperation between Iran and Russia, and the internal situation in Iran, which has to be factored into any strategic thinking about this situation. I think a critical element is to enhance deterrence vis-a-vis Iran, so that Iranians understand that there are consequences if they move ahead with their program, or to that extent, with their regional activities. They are a major destabilizing factor in the Middle East.
And here, I would like to emphasize that we are very much focused on the internal situation in Iran. We cannot stay indifferent. We see the regime butchering its own people. We see people demanding those liberties. And we believe that what's happening in Iran is essentially the regime losing its own population. I think the gap is huge, unbridgeable. And to the extent that any of us from the outside can express our sympathy and support for the brave Iranian people, we need to do it. And I take this opportunity, in this interview, to do it myself.
Question: In recent days and weeks, the number and size of street protests in Iran has gone down. What is Israel's message to Iranian people who still want a regime change but are maybe afraid right now to go out on the streets and potentially put their lives at risk?
Herzog: Israel and some of our allies are looking for concrete ways in which we can express that support for the Iranian people by communicating with them and allowing them to communicate with one another.
Question: Could you give some examples?
Herzog: I do not want to go into details. This is one of the cases where it's better to remain below the radar, rather than talk about it publicly. But, we are looking for ways, us and our allies, to communicate with the Iranian people and help them.
Mossad Director David Barnea (2021- )
In remarks on Sept. 10, 2023: “Fortunately for Iran, their terror efforts have been thwarted.”
“Why fortunately for them? Because thus far we have only got to the operatives and those who dispatched them.”
“All this under the direction and guidance of Iran. We are witnessing a significant increase in attempts to harm Jews and Israelis around the world, and we are working even now at this very moment to follow Iranian and proxy squads to prevent them from killing Jews and Israelis around the world.”
“The time has come to exact a price from Iran in a different way.”
“Harming Israelis and Jews in any way — by proxy, by Iranians, or by Iranian weapons smuggled into Israel — will lead to activity against the Iranians who sent the terrorists and also against the decision-makers, from the ground operators to the commanders who approved the operation, to the highest echelon, and I mean that.”
“These prices will be exacted with great precision in the depths of Iran, in the heart of Tehran.”
“The Iranian regime no longer has no room for denial and, above all, it has no immunity.”
“Our message is loud, clear and determined: To those who have decided to dispatch the [terror] cells, be sure that we will get to you, and that justice will be done and seen to be done.”
“This has been proven in the past, and it will be stepped up a level in the future. This is state terror: To be clear, we are talking about a political directive by the leader. The funding is by the state. And the planning and operations are carried by the state’s security and intelligence hierarchies.”
“I have a feeling that more [weapons] deals [between Iran and Russia] will be foiled soon”
“Our fear is that the Russians will transfer to the Iranians in return what they lack, advanced weapons that will certainly endanger our peace and maybe even our existence here.”
“Iran’s known nuclear weapon ambitions, and its past attempts to implement them, require that the international community be on high alert, and demonstrate unflagging determination to foil these ambitions.”
In a speech at the International Institute for Counter Terrorism on Sept. 12, 2022: “The Iranian leadership must understand that attacks against Israel or Israelis, directly or indirectly by proxies, will be met with a painful response against those responsible, on Iranian soil… The deal [2015 nuclear deal] is based on Iranian lies. Iran has sought to build a nuclear weapon that endangers Israel’s existence. The deal will easily help them reach this goal under international legitimization.”
IDF Chief of Staff Gen. Herzi Halevi (2023- )
In remarks on May 23, 2023: “Iran has progressed in recent years with enriching uranium more than ever before.”
“We are looking closely at the various arenas that are part of the path to nuclear capabilities. There are negative potential trends on the horizon that could lead to [us] acting. We have the capabilities.”
“We have the capability to strike Iran. We are not aloof to what Iran is trying to do around us. Iran also cannot be aloof to what we can do against it.”
In remarks on April 5, 2023: “We are ready to act against Iran. The Israeli army has the ability to strike both in distant countries and near home.”
“We know how to act alone. We are a sovereign nation that reserves the right to make its own decisions. It would be good to have the United States on our side, but it is not an obligation.”
In remarks after the Israeli-U.S. military exercise “Juniper 23” on Jan. 26, 2023: “We know how to defend. But when someone attacks you, the best defense is to attack him back, so it is offensive capabilities, and we shape it in order to bring a very clear message to Iran: if Iran makes mistakes, offense capabilities are getting ready.”
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kohavi (2019-2023)
In an exit interview with Israel Ha-Yom on Jan. 13, 2023: IDF planning “extends from a retaliatory strike on Iran that would be unrelated to the nuclear issue, to the taking out of the Iranian nuclear installations and auxiliary sites in that project, and if the situation eventually escalates into a full-fledged campaign then these plans also include the targeting of military sites and other assets.”
In an exit interview with The Jerusalem Post in January 2023:
Kohavi: We started [the “war between wars” campaign against Iran and its proxies] 10 years ago in 2013, and there were three attacks the whole year. Our average today is more than one a week, and we crossed 52 operations in 2022.
They still try because like in every battle – strategic or tactical – just because one side succeeds does not mean that the other side withdraws completely.
Iran still has a desire – even if they don’t actualize the entire vision of [former Qods Force commander] Qassem Soleimani, which in this sense has failed – to put weapons and advanced capabilities in Syria. Although we undermined a large portion of the plan, it doesn’t mean they have stopped trying.
We have not finished, and I don’t think [the Mabam] will finish in the next year or two. There will be more attempts, but there is no doubt that we have prevented what was supposed to be there. They wanted hundreds of surface-to-air missiles and surface-to-surface missiles. They wanted tens of thousands of militiamen and a second Hezbollah. All of this was thwarted completely.
Question: Israel used to say that it will not let Iran cross certain levels of nuclear enrichment, but they have crossed them. We said we would not let them throw out inspectors, but they did. IDF Intelligence chief Maj.-Gen. Aharon Haliva said recently that Iran might pass the weaponized 90% level soon. What changed in Israel’s red lines on Iran?
Kohavi: First of all, I don’t know what it means “we said.” We never made a red line.
Question: Netanyahu did, at the U.N.
Kohavi: No, he did not draw a red line in the sense that if they cross this specific line, then we commit to attacking.
Second, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA – the 2015 Iran nuclear deal] was signed with Iran when it already had enough nuclear material for seven potential nuclear bombs: six bombs from low-level enriched uranium and another one from 20% enriched uranium.
The situation today [is focused on] four potential bombs, even less. It is true that one of them is based on 60% enriched uranium; the distance between 60% and 20% is only a few weeks, so it does not really matter. What is important is not to allow Iran to obtain a nuclear bomb, but also not to get to the point where it can rapidly break out into a nuclear bomb within weeks.
That was, in my view, the biggest problem with the JCPOA. I thought it was a bad deal at the time, and I did not hide my view. Our responsibility in the IDF is to be ready to strike a substantial blow against the nuclear facilities and also against second-level military targets, and to be ready for a broader conflict with Iran.
This is what we did in recent years. One, we upgraded our intelligence to greatly increase the number of targets. Second, we increased the number of munitions and systems needed to attack Iran, with the process now at a peak. Third, we built operational plans. Fourth, and most important, we are training for this. We finished two drills. One was during the IDF’s War Month, and the second was at the end of November. We are about to hold a third very large exercise.
In under a year, we are going to have carried out three training exercises with dozens of aircraft, refueling aircraft and all of the operative units. In addition, we also established an Iran Department in the IDF, led by a major general. All of this speaks for itself regarding the level of preparation that we are achieving.
Question: Do you know when the attack option will be ready – in one more year? In another six months?
Kohavi: We will be ready at any point that the political echelon tells us, whether it is in the coming months, or in another year, or if it is in another three years.
In a discussion at the Institute for National Security Studies on Dec. 27, 2022: “The level of preparedness for an operation in Iran has dramatically improved. I will say more than that. The IDF will be ready for the day when an order is given to act against the nuclear program, and it will fulfill the mission that it is given.”
After meeting with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Nov. 22, 2022: “We are at a critical point in time that requires the acceleration of operational plans and cooperation against Iran and its proxies in the region. The deep cooperation with our greatest friend was and continues to be a central pillar of our national security.”
National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi (2022- )
In remarks on Sept. 11, 2023: “If Iran enriches uranium at above 60% as an action that we would identify — and there is no chance that we would not, that the world and the International Atomic Energy Agency would not recognize it — the result is that Israel would have to act.”
“There would not be any choice.”
“[Passing the 60 percent enrichment threshold would indicate that] we have reached the moment when Iran is clearly telling the world that it is going for a [nuclear] bomb.”
“It would mean that this is now Iranian policy.”
In remarks on June 30, 2023: “We are not getting closer [to attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities] because the Iranians have stopped, for a while now, they are not enriching uranium to the level that in our view is the red line.”
“But it can happen. So we are preparing for the moment, if it comes, in which we will have to defend the people of Israel against a fanatic regime that is set on annihilating us and is armed with weapons of mass destruction.”
In remarks on May 23, 2023: “Of course, [the new underground nuclear site near Natanz] limits the ability to attack…there is no place that can’t be reached.”
“We are sending the message, so is the US, that if you cross the red line, the price you will pay as a regime and as a country is one you wouldn’t want to pay, so be careful.”
“[The red line is when Iran is] coming close to the moment of no return.”
In an interview on Jan. 16, 2023: “If we are abandoned, Prime Minister Netanyahu will attack Iran’s nuclear facilities.”
“The previous government also said that it was preparing the defense forces…for a situation in which we are on our own.”
“The central mission of the prime minister and his primary obligation is to ensure that Iran does not obtain nuclear weapons. The alternative to an attack is accepting a reality in which a radical regime has nuclear weapons. No Israeli leader can accept that.”
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (2022- )
During a visit to Azerbaijan on July 13, 2023: “In recent years, Iran has been leading a worldwide terror campaign, with unprecedented scope, targeting Israelis and Jews around the world.”
“There have been more than 50 attempted attacks in recent years. Most of them were ready to go, and were foiled at the last moment.”
“Thanks to our defense establishment, thanks to close cooperation with many countries, and thanks to the understanding that Iran is a global threat, we foiled these attempts and saved lives.”
In remarks on May 22, 2023: “Since I took office, the number of Israeli strikes against the Iranians in Syria have doubled.”
“As part of this campaign, we are working methodically to strike the Iranian intelligence capabilities in Syria.”
“These strikes inflict significant damage to the attempts by the Revolutionary Guard to establish a foothold a few kilometers from the Israeli border.”
“Iran aims to expand its reach to the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea and even the shores of the Mediterranean.”
“[Converting civilian ships into military ships] is a structured plan designed to threaten trade and flight routes – both military and civilian – and to create a permanent threat in the maritime arena.”
In remarks on April 2, 2023: “The Iranians are extending their outreach to Judea and Samaria and Gaza, and are attempting to entrench themselves in Syria and Lebanon. We will not allow the Iranians and Hezbollah to harm us. We have not allowed it in the past, we won’t allow it now, or anytime in the future.”
“If necessary, we will push them out of Syria to where they belong – and that is Iran.”
In a joint press conference with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on March 9, 2023: “Today, we find ourself at a critical point in time. In the coming period, we will need to make pressing and important decisions. Iran aims to gain nuclear weapons and threatened not only Israel, but the entire world. Mr. Secretary, it is our duty to take all measures necessary to prevent Iran from gaining nuclear weapon. In this matter, our capabilities and our cooperation have great meaning and power.
“We dedicate a great part of our meeting today to discussing areas of defense cooperation. The Iranian nuclear threat requires us to be prepared for every course of action. I repeat and emphasize, we must be prepared for every course of action. Should Iran gain nuclear weapons and the power of nuclear deterrence, the Ayatollah regime will only increase its activities supporting Hezbollah and Hamas terrorism and exporting advanced weapons around the world, including UAVs and accurate missiles. We will see terrorism against innocence across the region, including the people of Iran, who suffer a violent and oppressive regime.
“Mr. Secretary, as the son of Holocaust survivors, I am fully aware of the heavy mission that rests on my shoulders, on our shoulders. We must do everything in our power to ensure that the dreams of the Ayatollahs are never fulfilled at any cost.”
“We have to be ready for every course of action. All the options are on the table. One thing have to be made clear, loud and clear: Israel will not allow Iran to possess weapons of mass destructions, nuclear weapons aiming Israel.”
In remarks on Feb. 21, 2023: “Israel is dealing with Syria, Hezbollah, Iran and Palestinian terror in a multi-front arena. The Iranian threat needs to be returned to the top of the global priority list.
“Iran is closer than ever to producing a nuclear weapon and has almost reached the red line. We will not allow that to happen — all the options are on the table. Our duty is to defend the State of Israel and the Jewish people.”
In remarks at the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 17, 2023: “Iran is currently holding discussions to sell advanced weapons, including UAVs and PGMs (precision-guided missiles), to no less than 50 different countries.”
“Iran is no longer a ‘local supplier,’ serving proxies in the Middle East. It is a ‘multinational corporation,’ a global exporter of advanced weapons. From Belarus in Eastern Europe, to Venezuela in South America, we have seen Iran delivering UAVs with a range of up to 1,000 kilometers.”
“All this takes place, while the missile embargo on Iran is still in effect, an embargo that will expire this year. Time is running out, while an evil regime traffics weapons.”
“The international community must create an effective alternative to the dying embargo, a practical mechanism of deterrence and consequences.”
“When we speak of preventing Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon, we must keep all the possible means, I repeat, all possible means on the table.”
At a memorial on Jan. 22, 2022 for submarine crew members who died in 1968: “We face a long list of threats - with the Iranian threat being at the forefront - which challenge us in both nearby areas and far off areas. The submarines are insurance for the State of Israel’s security, and they have a vital hand in confronting the threats surrounding us.”
In a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Jan. 5, 2023: “We are committed to doing whatever it takes to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons that threaten the State of Israel and the entire world.”
In a statement on Aug. 31, 2022 (before taking office): “Iran has witnessed three decades of international efforts to deter its nuclear program and its military projects to dominate the Middle East. Yet no methods of action have worked so far…The only solution to stop it is to go to a military operation or to seriously threaten a military operation. Nothing else works. Everything else is just talk.”
Foreign Minister Eli Cohen (2022- )
During an interview with i24NEWS published on Feb. 21, 2023: “Israel will take any needed steps to prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon. Iran is the number one country that finances terrorism worldwide.”
“The [United States] and relevant European countries will force snapback [sanctions] on Iran before the UN General Assembly in September [2023].”
“Israel will use any option, including attacking Iran, to prevent them from having a nuclear weapon. But it's also important that the U.S. and other countries put their credible military threats on the table. Iran is like a cancer. It is a threat to the stability not just of the region but of the entire world.”
“It’s not just the problem of Israel, it’s the problem of the world. It’s the right time to take the relevant steps immediately.”
In remarks at the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations in Jerusalem on Feb. 21, 2023: “If the United States does not establish a credible military threat immediately, either Israel will attack, or Iran will have a nuclear weapon, which we will not allow under any circumstance.”
“Iran is Israel's biggest challenge. They are constantly striving for a nuclear weapon…and they continuously endeavor to establish military threats against Israel, especially on our northern border, in the form of terror groups such as Hezbollah.”
“Iran is close to 90% enrichment [of uranium]; therefore steps must be taken immediately.”
“[Israel is willing to] use any means at its disposal to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons.”
In remarks with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Jan. 30, 2023: “I also want to thank you, Mr. Secretary, for the United States strong commitment to preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. Unfortunately, we are in a reality where Iran is rapidly advancing towards its goal of becoming a nuclear state. The international community must act quickly and effectively against Iran’s nuclear program. Its destabilizing activities in the Middle East and its finance of terror organization, including the Revolutionary Guard, which is the largest state terror organization in the world.”
In his first speech to Israeli Foreign Ministry staff on Jan. 2, 2023: “Israel is committed to preventing Iran from obtaining military nuclear capabilities by any means. Against the background of the international consensus that the nuclear agreement with Iran is no longer relevant, alongside the strengthening of independent security capabilities for every scenario, we will concentrate on an attempt to form an international front to prevent a nuclear Iran. Iran's actions are not only reflected in its ambition to obtain nuclear weapons, but also in the long-range missile project, drones and financing of international terrorism. Members of the international community must stop burying their heads in the sand.”
Defense Minister Benny Gantz (2021-2022)
At an event for graduating Israeli Air Force pilots on Dec. 28, 2022: “Israel has significantly increased its preparedness in recent years and is preparing for the possibility of an attack on Iran… You may cross the sky to the east in two or three years and take part in an attack on nuclear sites in Iran, for which we are preparing.”
Intelligence Minister Elazar Stern (2021-2022)
In an interview with the London-based Arabic news site Elaph on February 15, 2022: Iran is “building is building forces to threaten us at our borders.”
“In the past, it was stones and slingshots, and then machine guns, and now – rockets. We must prevent this in order to prevent a war. When Iran attacks Israel from its territory – Israel will respond there by targeting the head and not just the proxies.”
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