Iran Must End Israel’s Ambitions for Regional Hegemony

Israel’s latest strike on Iran exposes a deeper ambition for unchecked dominance—Tehran and the region must respond decisively.

Israel’s pre-emptive strike on Iran today under Operation “Nation of Lions” remains not only a brazen act of aggression— but one that mustn’t be sanitised by tired rhetoric about nuclear non-proliferation.

Israel’s attack isn’t about bombs but about its relentless pursuit of hegemony in the Middle East—and Iran’s refusal to submit and cower.

For years, Israel has acted as though it alone possesses the divine right to dominate the region – its claim to existential victimhood is no longer credible when measured against its decades-long campaign of strikes in Gaza, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, and now, once again, Iran – Israel’s actions aren’t defensive – they’re part of a deliberate strategy to cripple any regional power that might challenge its supremacy.

What Israel really fears isn’t a nuclear-armed Iran—it knows the international community and even US intelligence agencies have repeatedly concluded Iran isn’t actively building a weapon. What Tel Aviv fears is an Iran that’s powerful, independent, and resistant to the West. It fears a multipolar region, where it’s no longer the unchallenged enforcer of US interests or the regional “top dog.”

Iran’s political posture, its alliances with groups like Hezbollah and the Houthis, and its firm rejection of Israeli and American bullying have made it a symbolic and strategic threat. A powerful Iran represents a region that can no longer be coerced. Today’s attack isn’t about preventing war—it’s about preventing balance.

What also needs to be dispensed with is the myth of Israeli isolation. Israel’s attach mightn’t have been backed militarily by the US, but it was enabled by years of unconditional American political, financial, and diplomatic support. Both the Biden and Trump administrations—despite tactical differences—have worked to shield Israel from accountability while arming it to the teeth. The UK remains a loyal echo. Together, they have emboldened Israel to act as judge, jury, and executioner in a region desperate for justice and peace.

However, the world has changed. The US is no longer the unchallenged global superpower it once was. Its withdrawal from Afghanistan, its failure to contain conflicts in Ukraine and the Pacific, and its crumbling alliances in the Global South all point to its declining global influence. The UK is little more than a nostalgia project for empire. And Israel? It’s a regional garrison state that’s now isolated, insecure, and desperate.

Iran, meanwhile, remains undeterred. Unlike its adversaries, Iran has survived war, revolution, sanctions, sabotage, and isolation. It’s not only endured, but expanded its regional influence. And now, in the face of direct Israeli aggression, Iran must take a decisive and historic stand—not only to defend itself, but to end Israel’s imperial ambitions once and for all.

For Iran, it’s no longer just a question of retaliation, but a question of future order. The Middle East can’t know peace as long as one state wages war at will with impunity. Iran, is the counterweight to Israel’s unchecked militarism - and lead a coalition—diplomatic, political, and if necessary, military—that brings an end to the Israeli doctrine of domination.

That doesn’t mean indiscriminate violence or abandoning strategic restraint, but delivering a measured, forceful strategic blow to Israel’s military and intelligence infrastructure that it can no longer project power with impunity. Iran must now ensure Israel is no longer capable of launching unilateral wars that threaten regional - confronting Israel with consequences so severe it will be forced to re-evaluate its role, not as master of the region, but as one among equals.

Ending Israel’s ambitions isn’t just in Iran’s interest—it is in the interest of every nation in the region that has suffered under its boots: Palestinians in Gaza, Lebanese civilians subjected to airstrikes, Syrians bombed under cover of “counterterrorism,” Iraqis whose sovereignty has been repeatedly violated, and Yemenis blockaded and attacked with the backing of Israeli-aligned Gulf monarchies.

If Israel’s dream is to permanently cripple Iran, then Iran must end the fantasy that Israel can dominate forever, and the dangerous myth of Israeli invincibility.

The broader Islamic world must also reckon with this reality. A pan-regional consensus must emerge: that Israeli aggression will no longer be tolerated, and that real peace can only come when Tel Aviv is held to the same standard as every other nation. If Israel chooses war, then it must lose its appetite for it.

For too long, the West has portrayed Israel as a small, beleaguered state surrounded by hostile forces. However, Israel is the most heavily militarised and nuclear-armed power in the region—one that attacks at will, occupies at will, and kills at will. That narrative must now collapse under the weight of its own violence.

No longer can the belief be can Israel be stopped, but whether the region has the will to do it. After today, the answer must be yes. The world is now in the clutches of nuclear Armageddon because once again, is front and centre of the insanity that now prevails.