{"id":2941,"date":"2025-11-28T16:23:42","date_gmt":"2025-11-28T12:53:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/?p=2941"},"modified":"2025-11-28T16:23:42","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T12:53:42","slug":"how-did-israel-become-the-worlds-number-one-threat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/how-did-israel-become-the-worlds-number-one-threat\/","title":{"rendered":"How Did Israel Become the World\u2019s \u201cNumber One Threat\u201d?"},"content":{"rendered":"

On the verge of the collapse of a decades-long narrative, the world is witnessing a reversal of an equation it had lived with for years, a moment in which it is no longer Iran\u2019s nuclear program but Israel\u2019s reckless and increasingly dangerous behavior that is seen as the main threat to regional stability and global peace.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tehran – IranViw24<\/strong><\/p>\n

For the past two decades, the dominant narrative in a large part of international politics and Western media was that Iran was the most important security threat in the Middle East. And from Iran\u2019s nuclear program to the Axis of Resistance were portrayed as an epicenter of instability. But field data, the judgments of international institutions, and polls\u2014especially after the Gaza war\u2014have shown that this framing was not based on reality. Today, more than ever, Israel is seen as the unpredictable actor and the primary threat in the region\u2014not Iran.<\/span>
\nAs the Oxford Union recently confirmed in a decisive vote, Israel poses a greater threat to regional stability than Iran.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Collapse of the \u201cIran Threat\u201d Myth: The Reversal of an Old Narrative<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

For decades, Israeli leaders and some Western elites persistently labeled Iran as the greatest regional, and even global threat. In his famous 2012 UN General Assembly speech, Benjamin Netanyahu described Iran\u2019s nuclear program as the world\u2019s gravest threat and demanded a red line. Later, at the Munich Security Conference, he again called Iran the greatest threat to the world and compared it to Nazi Germany. Official U.S. documents also have repeatedly labeled Iran as the main threat to regional stability; for example, in the Inspector General\u2019s report on Operation Inherent Resolve, U.S. Central Command describes Iran explicitly as the greatest threat to regional stability.<\/span>
\nThis rhetoric, beside parts of mainstream media, created an environment in which every regional crisis\u2014from Yemen to Lebanon\u2014was automatically attributed to Tehran, while Israel, as a Western ally, was portrayed not as the source of a threat, but as a security partner. By contrast, the reality on the ground after the Gaza war, the spread of the conflict into Lebanon and Syria, and even the direct Israeli strike on Iran\u2019s diplomatic facilities in Damascus paints a completely different picture.<\/span><\/p>\n

Barefaced Genocide: When Tel Aviv Crossed Every Red Line<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Since 7 October 2023, the Gaza war has become one of the deadliest and most destructive conflicts in recent decades. According to aggregated UN OCHA data and official figures, by November 2025 more than 70,000 Palestinians and over 2,000 Israelis had been killed. Independent researchers estimate that roughly 80% of Palestinian casualties were civilians.<\/span>UN human-rights reports indicate that in Israeli strikes on residential buildings, about 70% of victims were women and children.<\/span>
\nSatellite assessments by UNOSAT show that tens of thousands of structures in Gaza have been completely destroyed, and much of the urban infrastructure has been damaged. A 2024 report cites more than 60,000 completely destroyed buildings, 20,000 severely damaged, and tens of thousands more with moderate damage. A joint World Bank\u2013UN assessment in early 2025 places the physical destruction in Gaza and the West Bank at tens of billions of dollars, with more than half of the damage affecting housing.<\/span>
\nThis scale of devastation has turned Gaza into an organized humanitarian disaster, reshaping Israel\u2019s image from a state claiming self-defense into an actor deliberately targeting the infrastructure of an entire society.<\/span>
\nMeanwhile, Israel expanded the war to other countries. The 1 April 2024 airstrike on Iran\u2019s consulate building in Damascus\u2014killing several IRGC commanders and Syrian civilians\u2014constituted one of the clearest violations of diplomatic immunity in recent years.<\/span>
\nMonths later, Israel launched the large-scale \u201cNorthern Arrows\u201d operation in Lebanon, which according to various sources killed more than 800 people, injured thousands, and displaced hundreds of thousands\u2014described by rights organizations as the most severe attacks since Lebanon\u2019s civil war.
\nThis pattern\u2014massive use of airpower against civilian areas, forced displacement, and cross-border strikes against embassies and sovereign territory\u2014clearly demonstrates which actor is truly undermining regional legal and security norms.<\/span><\/p>\n


\nArrest Warrants for \u201cWar Criminals\u201d: Unprecedented Global Isolation<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\nIn the past, Iran\u2019s nuclear file was at the center of scrutiny at the IAEA and UN Security Council, with the West portraying Iran as the major threat through the language of non-proliferation. But after the Gaza war, it is now Israel that faces the gravest international-law accusations.
\nIn January 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), in South Africa\u2019s genocide case against Israel, ruled that allegations of genocide in Gaza are legally plausible and imposed provisional measures requiring Israel to prevent further killings and improve humanitarian conditions. In May 2024, the ICJ ordered Israel to halt its Rafah operation and ensure humanitarian access.
\nThe International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor in 2024\u20132025 requested arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister and former defense minister for war crimes, including the deliberate targeting of civilians and using starvation as a method of warfare. ICC judges later formally issued the arrest warrants. No Iranian political leader has ever faced such charges\u2014highlighting who the international legal system sees as the major violator today.
\nPolitically, the same trend is visible:\u2013 The UN General Assembly in October 2023 and December 2024 overwhelmingly passed resolutions calling for an immediate Gaza ceasefire, with only a handful of states standing with Israel.\u2013 In March 2024, even with the U.S. abstaining, the UN Security Council passed a ceasefire resolution\u2014leaving Israel more isolated than ever.
\nThus, the same international system once used to pressure Iran now finds itself primarily focused on Israel\u2019s conduct.<\/span><\/p>\n


\nGlobal Fear of Israel\u2019s Nuclear Recklessness<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n


\nSince the Gaza war began, global concern has surged over the possibility of Israel using its nuclear capabilities\u2014a fear rooted in several realities:
\n\u2013 Israel\u2019s long-standing nuclear ambiguity\u2013 Its refusal to join arms-control treaties\u2013 A record of military decisions outside classical deterrence logic
\nIn 2023, when several Israeli political and security figures openly discussed the possibility of using nuclear weapons against Gaza, world media were stunned; such scenarios had never previously entered official discourse.
\nIn 2024, after the mass pager explosions in Lebanon\u2014when thousands of basic communication devices detonated simultaneously\u2014global mistrust of Israel intensified.
\nAs regional tensions grew, scenarios emerged about an Israeli nuclear strike on Iran before the 12-day war, triggering a new wave of international alarm. Analysts warn that Israel\u2019s current political system\u2014fractured, facing legitimacy crises, and under enormous public pressure\u2014may act out of fear, anger, or political revenge rather than rational strategic calculation.
\nCombined with nuclear capability, such a dynamic could produce the most dangerous security scenarios.<\/span><\/p>\n


\nArab Public Opinion Redefines Threats: Israel as the Primary Threat<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n


\nPublic opinion is a key indicator of security perception. Arab Opinion Index data show that even before the Gaza war, Israel\u2014not Iran\u2014was viewed as the greater and more immediate threat by Arab citizens. In the 2022 survey, when asked \u201cWhich country poses the greatest threat to regional security and stability?\u201d the majority answered Israel. When asked which country threatens their own nation the most, 28% named Israel, but only 9% named Iran, despite the heavy promotion of Iranophobia in international media.
\nThe countries where Israel is overwhelmingly viewed as the top threat include Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Egypt, Sudan, and Algeria\u2014states with direct experience or proximity to Israeli actions.<\/span><\/p>\n

After the Gaza war, a special survey revealed that 77% of respondents saw the U.S. and Israel as the greatest threats to regional security.
\nA 2020 study by an Israeli research center in Saudi Arabia and other Arab states similarly found that many Saudis saw Israel as a more serious threat than Iran.
\nThese trends\u2014sharpened after the Gaza and 12-day wars\u2014show that the Western claim that Arab public opinion sees Iran as the main threat is not rooted in reality.<\/span><\/p>\n


\nA Legitimacy Crisis Among Western Allies<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n


\nIn the West, Israel\u2019s global image has deteriorated at unprecedented speed. A YouGov poll in the UK (Oct 2025) shows 57% of the public considers Israel\u2019s Gaza military actions unjustifiable, with only 18% viewing them as justified.
\nFurther YouGov surveys across Western Europe show Israel\u2019s popularity at record lows: in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Denmark, and the UK, less than 20% view Israel positively, with net favorability dropping to \u201340 to \u201350.
\nIn the U.S., Gallup and Pew surveys indicate similar trends:
\n\u2013 Gallup (early 2024): 52% of Americans see the Israel\u2013Palestine conflict as a critical threat to U.S. national interests\u2014the highest since 2004.\u2013 Pew (Oct 2025): 39% say Israel has gone too far in Gaza; 59% view Israel unfavorably (up from 51% in early 2024).\u2013 Chicago Council poll: Americans who think the U.S. supports Israel \u201ctoo much\u201d rose from 30% to 37%, and over 50% of Democrats think U.S. support is excessive.
\nEven among American Jews, a Washington Post survey shows 61% believe Israel committed war crimes in Gaza, and about 40% consider genocide possible.
\nA 2024 UK YouGov poll found 11% of respondents view Israel as the greatest threat to global peace\u2014roughly equal to views about Iran\u2014indicating that parts of Western public opinion now see Israel as a potential global destabilizer.<\/span><\/p>\n


\nIran: A Responsible Actor vs. an Out-of-Control Regime<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n


\nIf real threat is measured by:
\n\u2013 the scale of violence\u2013 instability produced\u2013 violations of international law\u2013 and public perception
\nthe overall picture is clear.
\nIn the past two years, Israel has:
\n\u2013 killed tens of thousands of civilians\u2013 destroyed a large portion of Gaza\u2013 carried out major attacks in Lebanon and Syria\u2013 violated diplomatic immunity\u2013 struck even Qatar, a U.S. military ally\u2013 openly threatened to use nuclear weapons\u2013 faced genocide and war-crime charges at the highest international courts\u2013 and become unprecedentedly isolated at the UN
\nIran, despite debates around its regional policies, has:
\n\u2013 not launched wars to occupy foreign territory\u2013 not killed hundreds of thousands in neighboring countries\u2013 not been the target of ICJ or ICC genocide accusations\u2013 acted within a doctrine of pre-emptive defense and support for resistance movements against occupation and foreign military presence\u2014not as the primary source of instability
\nRegional surveys consistently show that Arab citizens\u2014despite historical skepticism toward Iran\u2014view the U.S. and Israel as the main threats, with Israel as the foremost destabilizing actor.
\nWestern public opinion is increasingly distrustful of Israel\u2019s conduct, seeing it as a threat to global peace and even to the West\u2019s own moral standing.
\nThis shift means the decades-long Iranophobia project\u2014built on exaggerating Iran\u2019s threat while normalizing Israeli behavior\u2014has failed in the real world. The Gaza war and its spillover have exposed the true weight of each actor.
\nToday, Israel is increasingly seen as the unpredictable, destabilizing force and the primary threat to peace and stability.
\nThis situation presents an opportunity for smart Iranian diplomacy to:
\n\u2013 firmly defend Palestinian rights and its national security,\u2013 rely on data and legal arguments,\u2013 strengthen its image as a responsible and predictable actor,\u2013 and challenge the imposed narrative that Iran is inherently a threat<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On the verge of the collapse of a decades-long narrative, the world is witnessing a reversal of an equation it had lived with for years, a moment in which it is no longer Iran\u2019s nuclear program but Israel\u2019s reckless and increasingly dangerous behavior that is seen as the main threat to regional stability and global […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2942,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67,69,72],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-analysis-and-notes","category-note","category-the-most-important-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2941"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2941\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2943,"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2941\/revisions\/2943"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranview24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}