The constant back and forth between the two adversaries appears to be on a decline as there has been a noticeable absence of missile strikes between Iran and Israel since April 19th, 2024. Iran deployed the biggest drone strike in history against Israel in response to Israel’s missile attack on the Iranian Embassy in Damascus, Syria. Though the attacks seem to be over, they will have lasting effects in the Middle East. 

Israel’s attack on April 19th was said to be a strategic way to calm tensions as they wanted to avoid a regional war. Former Israeli ambassador to Washington, Itamar Rabinovich said “Israel tried to calibrate between the need to respond and a desire not to enter into a cycle of action and counter-reaction that would just escalate endlessly.” In an interview given to Reuters, it is explained that Tehran, the capital of Iran decided to play down the incident on April 19th and indicated they had “no plans for retaliation – a response that appeared gauged towards averting region-wide war.” As no one wants a regional war, countries in the Middle East have taken an interest in this conflict along with international countries. According to Al Jazeera, “Saudi Arabia has not ruled out normalizing relations with Israel despite the carnage in Gaza.”

Mr. Hokayem, from the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said “Arab states have cooperated because primarily they want to avoid a regional confrontation. And they want to demonstrate they’re good partners to their Western allies. It’s also simply a matter of national sovereignty. They don’t want stuff flying and exploding in their skies.”

As the Middle East momentarily has been focused on Iran-Israel relations, the world’s attention also diverted away from the Gaza Strip and the death of thousands of women and children. While dealing with Iranian attacks, Israel with the help of the U.S.’s international response was able to gain partnership with Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Both countries helped defend the Iranian progressions. The first airstrike from Israel on the Iranian Embassy served as a deterrent against Iran. Furthermore, Israel’s ability to withstand the potentially devastating 300-plus missile and drone attack from Iran, thanks to its allies, suggests that beyond just deterring Iran, Israel may have sought to move focus away from Gaza and forge alliances that could offer support in that arena later on.

Regarding the conflict, Iran and Israel have been known enemies for decades. This recent confrontation brought back feelings of hostility from Iran towards Israel. The 1979 revolution can be considered the origin of this hostility, as since then Iran has consistently expressed their conviction that Israel is an illegitimate state and should be removed from the region. Iran also supports Hamas and their fight against Israel. Therefore the October 7th, 2023 advancement from Hamas on Israel was seen as an opportunity for Iran to enhance their regime’s standing and undermine the legitimacy of Israel.

Iran and Israel appear to be downplaying the likelihood of further escalation since Israel’s missile strike into Iran on April 19th. However, the landscape in the Middle East is ever-changing. The conflict allowed new countries to play a role in the recent and brief Iran-Israel encounter as they hoped to avoid a regional war. As the Israel-Hamas war continues, this missile crisis will bring a new reason for safety concerns in the Middle East. By participating in an air battle, both Israel and Iran displayed their military capability and readiness to escalate to similar attacks in the future.