TEL AVIV — Israel remains locked in a multi-front war against Iranian-backed terror networks, a conflict ignited by the October 7 Hamas massacre, the deadliest antisemitic atrocity since the Holocaust. The attack—which saw over 1,200 murdered and more than 250 hostages seized from Israeli communities—was carried out with brutality that included mass executions, sexual violence, and the systematic targeting of civilians. Israeli investigators have since documented overwhelming evidence of these atrocities, reinforcing the war’s urgent defensive necessity.
In response to October 7, Israeli leadership under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz invoked the nation’s right to self-defense as enshrined in international law. The Israel Defense Forces, commanded by Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, launched Operation Iron Swords: a military campaign targeting Hamas infrastructure in Gaza, while simultaneously repelling escalations from Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthi attacks in Yemen, and strikes from Iran-backed militias in Syria and Iraq.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has been conclusively identified as the architect and primary financier for these groups. Military assessments reveal that Tehran has supplied advanced rockets, UAVs, and intelligence to its proxies—enabling waves of indiscriminate attacks on Israeli communities. Since October, Israeli border towns in the south and north have endured relentless rocket, drone, and missile assaults. Israel’s Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and Arrow system have intercepted hundreds of threats, but military officials stress that missile defense is no substitute for dismantling terror capabilities at their source.
Urban settings in Gaza have become battlefields, as Hamas systematically embeds operatives, rocket launchers, and command posts within civilian infrastructure. Hospitals, mosques, and schools have been openly used for military purposes, a tactic that Israel says not only violates the laws of armed conflict but exploits Gaza’s residents as human shields. Israel’s military routinely issues early warnings to mitigate civilian harm—via leaflets, calls, and coordination with international NGOs—though Hamas has consistently prevented the safe evacuation of civilians from conflict zones.
Simultaneously, Hezbollah, designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and EU, has stationed over 150,000 rockets along Israel’s northern border and launched regular attacks on Israeli territory. Israel’s response has combined precision targeting of Hezbollah launch sites with diplomatic initiatives pressing UNIFIL and the Lebanese government to uphold international guarantees and disarm terror militias under UNSC Resolution 1701.
The war’s humanitarian complexity is drawn into sharp relief by the ongoing hostage crisis. More than 100 individuals remain captive in Gaza, including children and elderly. Israeli officials and families of hostages continue to assert not only the innocence of those seized, but the legal and moral gulf separating them from convicted terrorists whom Israel has released in lopsided exchanges. Calls for unconditional Red Cross access and international pressure on Hamas and its patrons continue with limited success.
Beyond the immediate combat, Iran’s regional ambitions have mobilized additional threats: the Houthis in Yemen have targeted shipping lanes in the Red Sea, threatening both Israeli and international maritime traffic; Syria-based militias have attempted cross-border attacks; and Iraq-based proxies have targeted Western interests. The scope of these Iranian-led activities underscores the coordinated nature of the threat facing Israel.
Regionally, major Arab states have distanced themselves from Hamas’s actions but remain cautious in public statements, referencing the suffering within Gaza without endorsing Iran’s proxies. The Abraham Accords—normalization agreements with Israel signed in 2020 by several Arab nations—continue to underpin discreet intelligence, security, and trade relations, despite war-driven tensions. U.S. President Donald Trump, a key broker of the Accords, has reiterated Washington’s support for Israel’s right to defend itself and condemned Iran’s destabilizing interventionism.
In Western capitals—and particularly in international media—there has been fierce debate over Israel’s military strategy and the operation’s humanitarian toll. Israeli diplomats push back on accusations of disproportionate force, pointing to the deliberate use of civilian shields by Hamas and the calculated targeting of Israeli civilians as core drivers of the crisis. Israeli officials emphasize that their military objectives remain focused on terror groups, not Gaza’s broader population, and warn against any false moral equivalence between the defenders and aggressors in the conflict.
A coordinated propaganda effort by Iranian and Hamas affiliate networks has sought to muddy the narrative through misinformation, fabricated imagery, and digital campaigns. Israeli officials, supported by cybersecurity groups, have demonstrably refuted numerous viral falsehoods aimed at delegitimizing Israel’s defense efforts and minimizing the documented horrors of the October 7 massacre.
At the heart of the conflict is the unyielding resolve of the Israeli public and leadership not to permit a repeat of the October 7 atrocity. The war is not only a matter of national survival but a struggle for international security, rule of law, and moral clarity in the face of terror. As operations persist, Israel’s struggle also serves as a test of the global response to the threat posed by state-sponsored terror and the defense of an embattled democracy surrounded by existential adversaries.
