The gap of how Iranians view Israel and the regime - opinion

For decades, the Islamic Republic of Iran has presented itself as a staunch opponent of Israel, investing heavily in regional allies and justifying this stance with rhetoric calling for the Jewish state's destruction. This official narrative might lead one to believe that hostility toward Israel is deeply ingrained in Iranian society. However, the reality on the ground, and among the Iranian diaspora, paints a far more complex picture.

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Anyone who looks only at this official line quickly gets the impression that hostility toward Israel is deeply rooted in Iranian society.

Increasingly, Iranians are demonstrating that their views on Israel diverge significantly from those of the ruling regime. Within the diaspora, this divergence is often visible through public displays of support for Israel, such as waving Israeli flags and sharing video messages of solidarity with Israeli leaders. This trend raises a critical question: why is support for Israel growing among many Iranians, even as they face the consequences of recent regional attacks and the regime continues to vilify the Jewish state?

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Iranians, both inside the country and in the diaspora, have been increasingly demonstrating that their views toward Israel differ fundamentally from those of the Islamic regime.

It is crucial to understand that hostility toward Israel is not an inherent historical sentiment in Iran. During the 1960s and 1970s, under the Shah, Iran and Israel enjoyed close economic and political ties, including significant cooperation between their intelligence services. Before the 1979 revolution, Iran was home to the largest Jewish community in the Middle East outside of Israel, numbering between 80,000 and 100,000 people, most of whom emigrated after the revolution, primarily to Israel and the United States.

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Hostility toward Israel is not historically embedded in Iran.

The Islamic Revolution of 1979 marked a distinct turning point. Since then, anti-Israel ideology has been systematically propagated. Unlike in some other regional contexts, anti-Israel sentiment in Iran is not a deep-seated societal feeling but rather a product of decades of state-sponsored propaganda and the geopolitical strategies of the Islamic regime. This is evident in instances where Iranian athletes have been compelled to withdraw from international competitions against Israeli opponents, despite their willingness to compete. The regime's ideology, reinforced through the education system where the Holocaust is often downplayed or denied and Israel and Jews are depicted as enemies of Islam, has created a manufactured animosity. The founder of the regime, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, even linked the struggle against Israel to the concept of martyrdom, emphasizing sacrifice and religious meaning in conflict. This narrative, echoed by current supreme leader Ali Khamenei, insists that Israel must be 'wiped off the map,' while billions are funneled to groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, ironically fostering an environment where genuine Iranian sentiment increasingly favors Israel.

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Compared to other parts of the region, hostility toward Israel is not a deeply rooted societal sentiment in Iran, but rather the result of decades of state propaganda and geopolitical choices made by the regime.