The phoenix foreign policy of Israel

THE Middle East, the hot bed of geopolitics is always in a churn. But on 7 October, 2023, Hamas did the impossible. It launched one of most successful and secretive campaigns in the history of warfare called 'Operation Al-Aqsa Flood'.

- JOYDEEP NAYAK

It broke the impregnable fortress of Israel. It broke the multi layered modern secure fortress called Iron Wall, in multiple locations. It attacked the Israeli Army and the people in multiple kibbutz. Hamas killed, kidnapped and maimed the general population of Israel. Benjamin Netanyahu's leadership and Israel's Foreign Policy was in total shambles. The entire Middle East crisis went into a big spiral.

Cut to, June 13, 2025, Israel launched a significant military operation codenamed "Operation Rising Lion," targeting key Iranian nuclear and military infrastructure. This operation marked a dramatic escalation in the long-standing tensions between the two nations, driven by concerns over Iran's nuclear program. The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) conducted a multi-phase assault, involving over 200 fighter jets and a range of precision-guided munitions, aiming to disrupt Iran's nuclear ambitions and military capabilities. All under the leadership of Benjamin Netanyahu, as a war time Prime Minister.

The dramatic turnaround of Israel's Foreign Policy from 7 October, 2023 to June 13, 2025 is a story worth recollecting, for its grit, patience and strategy.

Iran was able to weave a loose net around Israel, which it called the Axis of Resistance. This ring of fire, would persistently keep Israel under pressure and asphyxiate their free movements.

The Axis of Resistance, orchestrated by Iran, was a loose coalition of militant groups and state actors aimed at countering Israeli and Western influence in the Middle East. Emerging after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, it includes Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, the Houthi movement in Yemen, and various Shiite militias in Iraq, with Syria as a key state ally until the Assad regime's fall in 2024. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, particularly its Quds Force, provided funding, training, and weapons, spending an estimated $700 million annually.