{"id":2613523,"date":"2026-06-12T06:03:01","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T10:03:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-twelve-day-war-twelve-months-later\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T06:03:01","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T10:03:01","slug":"the-twelve-day-war-twelve-months-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-twelve-day-war-twelve-months-later\/","title":{"rendered":"The Twelve-Day War, twelve months later"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fthe-twelve-day-war-twelve-months-later%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2613523&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Exactly twelve months ago, the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/idf\/\">Israel Defense Forces<\/a> launched a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/magazine\/3446879\/from-tehran-to-tel-aviv-israeli-war-iran\/\">surprise attack<\/a> on the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/iran\/\">Islamic Republic of Iran<\/a> designed to degrade the mullahs\u2019 fearsome nuclear and ballistic missile programs. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/israel\/\">Israel<\/a> called the mission Operation Rising Lion, and it was later joined by a strike package of seven American B-2 bombers, which leveled Iran\u2019s hardened Fordow nuclear complex in an aerial assault that the United States labeled Operation Midnight Hammer.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/4604987\/the-document-that-could-define-post-trump-conservatism\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>The document that could define post-Trump conservatism<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/4604640\/new-man-graham-platner-cant-stop-lying\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>\u2018New man\u2019 Graham Platner can\u2019t stop lying<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/4603415\/scott-pelley-cbs-firing-entitlement\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>No one is entitled to work at CBS or anywhere else<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The concerted campaign, which came to be known as the Twelve-Day War, marked the first outright conflict between the Jewish state and the Islamic Republic, and it significantly set back the ayatollahs\u2019 long-gestating plan to wipe Israel off the map. It also provided a proof of concept for Operation Roaring Lion\/Epic Fury, the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran that began in late February and concluded, with a still-rocky ceasefire, some forty days later.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As we usher in the first anniversary of the initial war, it\u2019s worth asking what its lasting effects have been. Three key questions encompass the military, strategic, and diplomatic fronts: How badly did Israel and the U.S. damage Tehran\u2019s menacing nuclear capabilities and general warmaking capacity? How has the strategic equation changed in the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/middle-east\/\">Middle East<\/a>? And how has the Jewish state\u2019s standing in the world held up in the wake of the fighting?<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<h2 id=\"h-the-actual-front\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">The actual front<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In strict military terms, there can be no question that Operations Rising and Roaring Lion (or Midnight Hammer and Epic Fury, if you prefer) have severely diminished Iran\u2019s ability to develop a nuclear weapon, as well as its capacity to assemble and fire ballistic missiles.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A large plume of smoke rises over Tehran, March 7, 2026. (Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIran is no longer a nuclear threshold state as its status was prior to its war with Israel,\u201d the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inss.org.il\/publication\/iran-nuclear-program\/\">concluded<\/a> in late June 2025, following the Twelve-Day War. \u201cIt would take Iran at least one to two years to regain threshold status, assuming a decision by Supreme Leader [Ali] Khamenei to pursue nuclear weapons.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The organization found that the attacks destroyed around 15,000 centrifuges at the Natanz nuclear facility, including both first-generation and advanced models. At Fordow, built into a mountain, the six Massive Ordnance Penetrator bombs released by the American B-2s flying out of Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri leveled the plant and reportedly entombed the nearly 900 pounds of uranium that the mullahs had enriched to 60%, a short technical step away from weapons-grade material. And Israeli ordnance rendered inoperable the Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center, where the Islamic Republic converted uranium compounds from yellowcake to UF6 gas and back to uranium metal, the fission core of a nuclear weapon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition, both the Arak heavy water facility, which was intended to produce weapons-grade plutonium, and the Parchin complex, where Iranian engineers labored to weaponize the country\u2019s nuclear materials, sustained heavy damage. And on top of that, in its opening moments, Rising Lion eliminated at least 10 top Iranian scientists in a stunning display of intelligence and operational virtuosity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Other estimates of the setback to the Iranian nuclear program are more far-ranging than INSS\u2019s. Last year, the Pentagon <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/middle-east\/iranian-nuclear-program-degraded-by-up-two-years-pentagon-says-2025-07-02\/\">reckoned<\/a> that the Twelve-Day War had delayed the mullahs\u2019 nuclear dream by up to two years. Mark Dubowitz of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fdd.org\/podcasts\/2025\/11\/19\/is-iran-unraveling\/\">reported<\/a> that the Israeli Atomic Commission believes the number is two-and-a-half years. And keep in mind that these estimates predate the most recent conflagration, where Israeli and American bombers further ravaged the Islamic Republic\u2019s nuclear sites, likely increasing the lead time for its nuclear program\u2019s rehabilitation.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Protesters in Athens stand on an Israeli flag defaced with a swastika, May 18, 2026. (Aggelos NAKKAS \/ AFP \/ Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the 900 pounds of 60%-enriched uranium \u2014 what President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a> refers to as the \u201c<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/04\/23\/us\/politics\/trump-iran-nuclear-dust-uranium.html\">nuclear dust<\/a>\u201d \u2014 reportedly remain buried under literal tons of rubble on Iranian soil. Former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant recently <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/gallant-israel-us-could-have-got-enriched-uranium-out-set-iran-back-30-years\/\">claimed<\/a> that the U.S. and Israel could and should have retrieved it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe IDF and US military had the capability to physically extract the enriched uranium from Iran,\u201d Gallant <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/gallant-israel-us-could-have-got-enriched-uranium-out-set-iran-back-30-years\/\">told<\/a> Israel Army Radio. \u201cThe uranium enriched to high and medium levels represents 30 years of Iran\u2019s nuclear efforts. If you bring it to you, you\u2019ve set them 30 years back.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Whether the long-promised deal that Trump has ardently sought for months involves the safe removal of this highly dangerous dust remains a critical unanswered question, as does the fate of <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/wgbh\/frontline\/article\/iran-suspected-nuclear-site-pickaxe-mountain-us-israel-war\/\">Pickaxe Mountain<\/a>, Iran\u2019s even more rigorously fortified nuclear facility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the ballistic missile front, initial estimates indicate extraordinary losses for Tehran. The INSS assesses that the mullahs\u2019 ability to produce missiles has <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inss.org.il\/publication\/roaring-lion-first-summary\/\">declined<\/a> from 2,500 per month at the outset of Roaring Lion\/Epic Fury to 125 per month today. Interestingly, the 2,500-per-month figure reflects a marked <em>increase<\/em> from the conclusion of Rising Lion\/Midnight Hammer, when the Islamic Republic was able to manufacture 1,500 missiles per month. In the eight months that intervened between the two operations, Iran rapidly rebuilt and even supercharged its missile capacity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The most recent war saw determined efforts by Israeli and American air force pilots to hunt and destroy Iranian missile launchers, many of which are mobile and can be easily transported and concealed. In many ways, the campaign succeeded \u2014 the Islamic Republic\u2019s missile firing rate <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/livecoverage\/iran-us-israel-conflict-2026\/card\/JNo5ymksP7KK4x2Rvk2e?gaa_at=eafs&#038;gaa_n=AWEtsqeT3SuzvYK8nEI3ZilWyUT2TFwZwaI7j115TpNIHmEm79X5-AslHTmLapsBA9E%3D&#038;gaa_ts=69aef2bf&#038;gaa_sig=vtNq4Pmtz61x9estzI8mga1OhkCU7AsHttFB5JzrssoRzF5zbnkrrdK4KUSOnYGU9_M1e90rWeDM2W6I6TVk5Q%3D%3D\">declined<\/a> by 90% from the early days of Epic Fury. But, according to <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inss.org.il\/publication\/roaring-lion-first-summary\/\">INSS<\/a>, \u201cat the time of the ceasefire, Iran still retained 60% to 70% of its missile launch capabilities (missiles and launchers).\u201d And even more troublingly, while a long-term hobbling of the mullahs\u2019 missile program at first appeared on the agenda for the grand bargain between Washington and Tehran, it seems to have fallen off. Also largely unmentioned in the ongoing talks is the looming <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cvgzgyjk2weo\">drone threat<\/a>, with which Iran continues to menace its Gulf neighbors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thus, since June 2025, Israel and the U.S. have managed to dramatically defang Iran\u2019s nuclear and ballistic missile threats, but those gains could prove fleeting if not locked into an ironclad agreement.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-the-strategic-front\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">The strategic front<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Taking a step back, how well have Rising and Roaring Lion advanced Israeli and American strategic interests in the Middle East? Here, success has been more uneven than in the actual, physical theater of war.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First, the joint attacks on the mullahs\u2019 war machine have gravely, but not necessarily fatally, wounded Tehran\u2019s network of proxy armies across the region. The most imposing of these, Hezbollah in Lebanon, came to its patron\u2019s defense in February by firing rockets into Israel in violation of a late 2024 ceasefire. But that intervention proved unwise, as Israel responded with a ferocious counterattack and now <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c5yx8knpr5no\">controls<\/a> vast swathes of southern Lebanon, including key <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.idf.il\/en\/mini-sites\/idf-press-releases-israel-at-war\/may-26-pr\/idf-takes-operational-control-of-the-beaufort-ridge\/\">strategic strongholds<\/a>. Hezbollah\u2019s precipitate decision to enter the war has served to further alienate it from the rest of the notoriously fractious Lebanese society and has sparked <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/4531292\/israel-lebanon-critical-step-forward-peace\/\">renewed efforts at a peace agreement<\/a> between Israel and its northern neighbor, as discussed further below.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference in Palm Beach, Florida, Dec. 29, 2025. (Joe Raedle \/ Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Hezbollah has continued to fight on, however less effectively, as have other Iranian proxies, including Hamas, Yemen\u2019s Houthis, and various pro-Tehran militias in Iraq. Israelis have also wearied of the Lebanon campaign, with repeated IDF reservist callups and Hezbollah\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/06\/04\/world\/middleeast\/hezbollah-fiber-optic-drones-israel.html\">lethal first-person-view and fiber-optic-directed explosive\u00a0drone attacks<\/a> straining the fabric of the citizen army. Like its ballistic missile program, curtailing the Islamic Republic\u2019s ongoing support for Shia fighters in the Levant was initially on the list of American ceasefire demands, yet it\u2019s now, ominously, fallen off.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Second, the various Israeli and American operations designed to undermine and even topple the mullahcracy, but while cracks have <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/netanyuahu-foundations-of-irans-terror-regime-have-cracked-its-doomed-to-fall\/\">emerged<\/a> within the regime, it has not yet succumbed. The Twelve-Day War arguably enabled and possibly inspired the popular uprising that convulsed Iran in December 2025 and January 2026, unrest so widespread that the Islamic Republic was able to quell it only by slaughtering <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/7357635\/more-than-30000-killed-in-iran-say-senior-officials\/\">tens of thousands<\/a> of its own citizens. Epic Fury was designed, at least in part, to accelerate the process, beginning with a decapitation strike that eliminated supreme leader Ali Khamenei. American and Israeli officials then <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/pm-end-of-iranian-regime-depends-on-iranian-peoples-will-to-throw-off-the-yoke-of-tyranny\/\">hoped<\/a> that, by pummeling the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and the reviled <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/saul_sadka\/status\/2031685472716558757?s=43\">Basij<\/a> militia, they would empower everyday Iranians to \u201cthrow off the yoke of tyranny.\u201d The combined attacks have thrown the Guard into tumult, and Khamenei\u2019s successor \u2014 his son Mojtaba \u2014 isn\u2019t nearly as studied and patient as his unlamented father. But so far, the regime has managed to hold things together as far as we can tell. A Free Iran will hopefully materialize soon, but it hasn\u2019t yet.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Finally, for its part, the ayatollahs have responded to the attacks by successfully exploiting a strategy, in an unsettlingly surprising manner, that has roiled economic markets: impeding maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz. While Trump has, at various moments, vowed to <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/116166926920657651\">backstop<\/a> insurance for ships transiting the strait, escort them outright, and implement <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2026-06-03\/us-looks-to-unblock-hormuz-with-quiet-version-of-project-freedom\">Project Freedom<\/a>, he has also abandoned all three of these efforts. Instead, the U.S. has <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c5yv6xr6me3o\">countered<\/a> Iran\u2019s strategy with its own blockade of Iranian ships, especially its oil tankers. At this point, it\u2019s unclear whose approach will bear more fruit and who will blink first.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The broader strategic picture appears beneficial to Israel and the U.S., but it\u2019s likely too early to know for certain.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-the-diplomatic-front\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">The diplomatic front<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The aftermath of Rising and Roaring Lion has been mixed for Israel\u2019s global reputation. On one hand, the military alliance between Jerusalem and Washington has never been stronger. As I noted in <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/4489176\/how-israeli-experiencing-war-against-iran\/\">these pages<\/a> in March, \u201cthe seamless cooperation between the two allies has exceeded expectations. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth\u00a0<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/hegseth-salutes-israels-unmatched-skill-and-iron-determination\/\">complimented<\/a>\u00a0the Israelis warmly in the early days of the campaign, praising the IDF\u2019s \u2018unmatched skill and iron determination,\u2019 lauding Israel as a \u2018steadfast partner,\u2019 proclaiming that it\u2019s a \u2018breath of fresh air\u2019 to fight alongside the Israeli military, and stating that \u2018we salute your courage and your contribution.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Illustration by  Dean MacAdam for the Washington Examiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Israel has also <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/israel-to-send-2-delegations-to-uae-next-week-as-ties-strengthen-amid-iran-war\/\">bolstered<\/a> its ties with Gulf allies, who\u2019ve also come under blistering attack from Tehran \u2014 the United Arab Emirates alone has absorbed some 550 ballistic and cruise missiles and 2,200 drones. In response, as various <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.calcalistech.com\/ctechnews\/article\/b1segxza11e\">outlets<\/a> reported, the IDF supplied the United Arab Emirates not only with batteries of its Iron Dome interceptor missiles but also with its highly advanced Iron Beam laser interception system. According to the <em>New York Times<\/em>, Israel even dispatched soldiers to the Emirates to help deploy its systems \u2014 another first. As one Israeli official told the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/israel-to-send-2-delegations-to-uae-next-week-as-ties-strengthen-amid-iran-war\/\"><em>Times of Israel<\/em><\/a>, the conflict \u201cpresents an opportunity to enhance ties. We believe in this market\u2026 The enhancement in cooperation will grow further, not only in military cooperation.\u201d Also encouraging was the UAE\u2019s withdrawal from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, a further indication of the country\u2019s western turn.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In parallel, Israel has been inching closer to <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.timesofisrael.com\/the-strategic-logic-behind-saudi-israeli-normalization\/\">normalization<\/a> with Saudi Arabia, another favored bombardment target of the mullahs and a long-desired peace partner of the Jewish state. As I detailed <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/4531292\/israel-lebanon-critical-step-forward-peace\/\">here<\/a> in April, Israel and Lebanon continue to close in on a long-sought rapprochement. Trump even <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/trump-calls-arab-nations-sign-abraham-accords\">implored<\/a> Qatar and other Muslim states traditionally hostile to Israel to join the Abraham Accords.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the same time, some dark clouds loom on the horizon. Around the world, especially in Western Europe, Israel\u2019s standing has plummeted, as leftist governments like those of Spain\u2019s loathsome Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez call for <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.eu\/article\/spain-pushes-to-end-eu-israel-association-agreement-pedro-sanchez\/\">boycotting<\/a> the Jewish state and expelling it from various <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jpost.com\/opinion\/article-893997\">economic<\/a> and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c20e1m7vd2no\">cultural<\/a> organizations. Antisemitism has swelled in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and elsewhere, with maleficent actors deliberately blurring the lines between detesting Israel and assailing Jews.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the U.S., the Democratic Party continues its slide toward outright hostility to the Jewish state. Recent <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/three-quarters-of-democrats-oppose-aid-to-israel-poll-finds\/\">polling<\/a> found that three-quarters of Democrats oppose aid to Israel, while the party\u2019s leading candidates <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/tensions-over-pro-israel-lobbying-group-highlight-rifts-democratic-primaries-2026-05-07\/\">scramble<\/a> to outdo each other in denouncing and abjuring campaign funding from the America Israel Public Affairs Committee. Zohran Mamdani, the vehemently anti-Israel mayor of New York City \u2014 which is home to nearly a million Jews, the vast majority of whom support the Jewish state \u2014 pointedly <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/mamdani-israel-parade-nyc-002667e94d041432d3eab1c4cfc99d56\">refused<\/a> to march in the Israel Day Parade last month, becoming the first Gotham chief executive to do so.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the Republican side of the aisle, too, Israel\u2019s standing has suffered as the war drags on. While an overwhelming proportion of MAGA enthusiasts <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/poll-trump-administration-iran-war-goals\/\">supported<\/a> Epic Fury, a nagging extremist fringe, populated by the likes of the execrable Tucker Carlson and the odious Candace Owens, seeks to drive a wedge between the U.S. and Israel. For his part, Trump seems to have grown tired of Israeli Prime Minister <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/benjamin-netanyahu\/\">Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>, calling him \u201cf***ing crazy\u201d in a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/trump-said-to-yell-at-netanyahu-youre-fking-crazy-youd-be-in-prison-if-not-for-me\/\">profanity-laced call<\/a> earlier this month.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m saving your ass,\u201d the president told the prime minister. \u201cEverybody hates you now. Everybody hates Israel because of this.\u201d The impolitic exchange, which Trump later <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/trump-confirms-calling-netanyahu-fing-crazy-during-their-recent-phone-call\/\">confirmed<\/a> (taking care, nevertheless, to note that \u201cI like Bibi a lot\u201d), surely reflects the 47th president\u2019s penchant for hyperbole, but it also reveals his ongoing frustration with the current status quo.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Looking ahead, Israelis are wary of who may succeed Trump. Vice President JD Vance has throughout his career expressed strong support for the Jewish state, but his continued closeness to malicious figures like Carlson is not encouraging. And in a recent <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/vance-iran-deal-a-home-run-for-the-american-people-whether-israel-likes-it-or-not\/?utm_source=The+Daily+Edition&#038;utm_campaign=daily-edition-2026-06-09&#038;utm_medium=email\">Fox News interview<\/a>, he seemed to place daylight between the U.S. and Israel, noting that the two countries \u201chave a lot of shared interests, but we also have some situations where our interests diverge.\u201d Specifically, he cited the potential diplomatic deal with Iran that Trump has chased for months, acknowledging that Israel \u201cmay not like that, but fundamentally, we think this is in the best interest of the United States of America.\u201d At the same time, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, perceived by many as Vance\u2019s chief rival for the Republican presidential nomination in 2028, has consistently reiterated his \u201c<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reels\/DQPHIHggufu\/\">ironclad<\/a>\u201d commitment to the security of the Jewish state.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/4567541\/us-china-ai-war-heats-up\/\"><strong>THE US-CHINA AI WAR HEATS UP<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How can Israel restore its reputation? For one thing, the country heads to elections in October, and current polling indicates Netanyahu\u2019s ruling coalition is struggling to retain a majority. The country, and much of the world, has tired of the prime minister, who\u2019s now held office for a total of more than 18 years. For another, when the fighting finally dies down, and in the wake of the hoped-for expansion of the Abraham Accords, the Jewish state\u2019s standing should revert to the mean, at least somewhat. But in order to win back the widespread support it traditionally commanded, Israel\u2019s supporters \u2014 Jewish and non-Jewish, in-country and out \u2014 have their work cut out for them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The conflict between Iran and Israel is far from over. Indeed, it <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/world\/middle-east\/iran-fires-missiles-at-israel-after-israeli-airstrike-on-beirut-a93b4da7\">flared again<\/a> this week, when the Islamic Republic violated the ceasefire by firing 24 missiles at the Jewish state, prompting a response by the IDF that targeted Iranian air defenses and plants manufacturing ballistic missile precursor materials. It\u2019s perhaps fitting that, twelve months after the Twelve-Day War, its participants remain at loggerheads. While Israel and the U.S. have taken tremendous strides during that year to stamp out the mullahs\u2019 malign efforts to destabilize the Middle East, much remains to be done.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Michael M. Rosen is an attorney and writer in Israel, a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and author of <\/em>Like Silicon From Clay: What Ancient Jewish Wisdom Can Teach Us About AI.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exactly twelve months ago, the Israel Defense Forces launched a surprise attack on the Islamic Republic of Iran designed to degrade the mullahs\u2019 fearsome nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Israel called the mission Operation Rising Lion, and it was later joined by a strike package of seven American B-2 bombers, which leveled Iran\u2019s hardened Fordow<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3449,"featured_media":2613524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/TrumpIranWar_magazinecover.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2613523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/TrumpIranWar_magazinecover.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2613523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3449"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2613523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2613523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2613524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2613523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2613523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2613523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}