Historical. After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, relations shifted from cooperation to hostility. Israel considers Iran's nuclear program and its support for proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas an existential threat. Meanwhile, Iran seeks to enhance its regional influence and confront what it sees as "Israeli occupation".

The conflict often takes the form of a "shadow war" or "proxy war" in countries like Yemen, Syria, and Lebanon, where Israel targets Iranian weapon shipments and sites of Iranian proxies, and Iran responds with threats or attacks through its proxies. Recently, tensions have escalated directly with exchanges of strikes.