Reveals Reasons For Israel To Attack Iran, Save Benjamin Netanyahu's Career?

JAKARTA The confrontation between Israel and Iran since last week has escalated. However, there is no explanation as to the real reason why Israel decided to carry out the attack.

Starting Friday (14/5/2025) in the morning Israel launched a number of attacks on various nuclear facilities in Iran, including the capital Tehran. The attack killed hundreds of people including a number of top Iranian military and nuclear experts.

Despite receiving a deadly response from Iran, Israeli officials continue to emphasize that attacks on Iran's nuclear and military facilities are needed.

A number of justifications have also been conveyed to the Israeli public, but there is no reason to explain what was the real reason why Israel decided to carry out a unilateral attack and for no reason.

One of the concerns in attacking the nuclear site is that this setback could cause Iran to reorganize their operations with a more persistent effort to get nuclear deterrence, said Ali Vaez, an Iranian expert for the International Crisis Group (ICG).

The amount of damage caused by both sides, and which sites were hit, is unclear. In addition, it is also difficult to know how much missile and ammunition both sides still have in their inventory, as well as how long Israel and Iran have been able to withstand this battle.

Israel is known as one of the countries that has a military advantage in the Middle East. Not only because of its conventional arsenal and US support, but also because they have an advantage that other countries in the region do not have, namely nuclear weapons.

Tel Aviv is believed to own a nuclear weapon, although it never publicly acknowledged it.

On the other hand, Israel considers Iran as the number one enemy, because it is the main supporter of Israeli enemies such as Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that Iran was close to obtaining nuclear weapons, although Tehran insisted their nuclear program for peaceful purposes.

Israel claims the attacks they launched were deterrence attacks, which were meant to address direct and inevitable threats from the Iranian side to make nuclear bombs. But there is no evidence for this claim.

"Israel's attack is undoubtedly carefully planned for a long time," said Ori Goldberg, a Middle Eastern analyst specializing in Iranian affairs, citing Al Jazeera.

Prevention attacks should contain elements of self-defense, which in turn are triggered by an emergency. But such an emergency never seems to happen," he added.

Ongoing military operations also appear to suggest that Israel is not only intending to remove Iran's nuclear activity. The Israeli archipelago bombed various military and government targets, from missile bases to gas lading and oil depots.

Not only that, Israel has also carried out a series of killings against senior Iranian military leaders, one of which is Ali Shamkhani, although Iranian state media and government have not confirmed his death.

He is a former defense minister and close adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Shamkhani is believed to have been the main character in talks with the US in recent months.

His murder, along with other high-ranking officials, reflects Israel's favorite mode of operation. Israel often misses' certain people with the hope of their deaths resulting in the destruction of systems and institutions led.

For the Shamkhani case, his death could be interpreted as an attempt to sabotage talks between Iran and the US.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been criticized within his own country, along with attacks on Gaza since October 2023. Netanyahu is said to have made decisions by the military on the basis of his own political considerations.

According to his critics, he relies on conflict, both in Iran and in Gaza, to defend his coalition. Netanyahu was also accused of being involved in various corruption charges. Since 2023, the man who was born on October 21, 1949 has actually received threats to be defeated.

Until then there was a war between Iran and Israel which Goldberg said was like a breath of fresh air for Netanyahu amidst attempts to overthrow him.

"For Netanyahu, the difference between domestic and foreign politics cannot be distinguished," said Ori Goldberg.

"No threat threatens Israel. This is not something inevitable. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report does not contain anything that shows Iran poses an existential threat to Israel."

For now most politicians in Israel have supported the military since the attack on Iran. Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid even praised the attack, even with left-wing politician Yair Golan who also provided support.

"Netanyahu's decision to attack Iran arises due to pressure on his political position and his addiction to blood and violence. But the move appears to have the support of the opposition parliament," said Israeli left-wing lawmaker Ofer Cassif.

Will this be a "savement" for Netanyahu? Will the Israeli public forgive me for his sad domestic failures and his horrific offenses in Gaza?

"If you look at the excitement that is happening in Israel's public discourse, it may be true," Goldberg said.