Iran-Israel 40-Year 'Shadow War' Intensifies... "Israel Will Be Reduced to Dust"

Protest scenes condemning the U.S. airstrike and killing of Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force, in Iran [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The Iranian government has announced that it will target major cities in Israel as a retaliatory measure for the U.S. airstrike and killing of Commander Qasem Soleimani, deepening the longstanding animosity between Iran and Israel. Since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, Iran and Israel have engaged in mutual actions such as assassinations of Iranian nuclear scientists and airstrikes on proxy forces, a conflict often referred to internationally as the "shadow war."

According to foreign media including the Associated Press, on the 5th (local time), alongside the decision to abandon the nuclear agreement (JCPOA - Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), Iran also hinted at attacks on Israel. The Iranian government announced the termination of the nuclear deal and stated it would no longer limit uranium enrichment capacity and concentration. Subsequently, Mohsen Rezaee, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, tweeted that "If the U.S. retaliates militarily against Iran, Haifa and Tel Aviv in Israel will be reduced to dust," suggesting possible attacks on Israel in retaliation for the killing of Qasem Soleimani by U.S. forces.

This appears to be a response to remarks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding Soleimani's killing and nuclear armament. According to The Washington Post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the U.S. airstrike operation against Soleimani on the 3rd (local time) as a "swift, strong, and decisive action." During a weekly cabinet meeting, he referred to Israel as a "nuclear weapons state," later correcting himself to "energy power," which significantly provoked Iran.

The animosity between Iran and Israel intensified after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, which established an anti-American Shiite theocratic regime in Iran. Especially since Iran began nuclear development, intelligence warfare between Israel and Iran has escalated. The Quds Force, a unit under the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps led by Soleimani who was killed in the recent U.S. airstrike, was at the forefront of this intelligence warfare.

The Quds Force is an elite organization that supports pro-Iranian military groups overseas and conducts covert military operations, making it a thorn in the side of the U.S. and Israel. The Quds Force has expanded Iran's influence by supplying weapons and funds to pro-Iranian armed groups across the Middle East, including Lebanon's Hezbollah, Yemen's Houthi rebels, and Palestine's Hamas, leading attacks against the U.S. and Israel. The Shiite militias in Iraq that attacked the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on the 31st of last month are also known to have received support from the Quds Force. Notably, Soleimani was known as the mastermind behind the so-called "shadow war," directing cyberattacks, drone bombings, and assassinations of diplomats against Israel.