In the tumultuous landscape of the Middle East, Israel stands as a beacon of freedoms, human rights and democracy amid a sea of terrorist organizations and authoritarian regimes seeking its destruction.
Israel is currently facing a multi-front war for its survival, with Qatar, Iran and Iran's proxies, which are encircling Israel, leading the charge. The gravity of this aggression cannot be overstated: not just for the existence of Israel, but also for that of the US, Europe and the West.
To prevent Israel's adversaries from escalating – which, of course, is what they do when they receive US support, the Biden Administration needs to show Israel and other US allies unwavering support – just as the US did this week with Japan.
If the Biden administration abandons Israel now, it would not only betray a steadfast ally, it would seriously jeopardize the entire region and the Free World.
A victory for Qatar and Iran will unavoidably whet the appetite of other authoritarian regimes, including China, Russia, North Korea and assorted terrorist organizations. Venezuela, slyly, while no one was looking, has already set about seizing part of its oil-rich neighbor Guyana.
Israel's struggle for survival is not solely a regional conflict; it is a battle between civilization and those who think international law, human rights and the rules of war are a Western joke. Since the founding of the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979, its rulers have been calling for "Death to America" – now also demanded in Dearborn, Michigan.
Which side is the US on? President Joe Biden's legacy, especially after surrendering Afghanistan to the Taliban in 2021, will be "Biden, friend of the Terrorists."
Iran is clearly terrified of any military confrontation with Israel or the US, which is why the mullahs use proxies -- their human shields -- in the first place. All the US would have to do to stop much of Iran's bellicosity is take out the bases of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) inside Iran -- so there is a direct cost to Iran, not just to its human shields.
At the forefront of Israel's adversaries is the Iranian regime, a brutal theocracy which the US labeled in 2023 the world's "leading state sponsor of terrorism," with ambitions that extend far beyond its borders. Iran's population, roughly 90 million, dwarfs that of Israel, roughly 9 million, and its substantial military capabilities are rapidly on the way to including nuclear weapons to take out not just the "Little Satan," Israel, but also the "real" target, the "Great Satan" United States.
As for Israel, IRGC Commander-in-Chief Hossein Salami has openly declared Iran's intention to erase it from the global political map. Such rhetoric is not just bluster; it is an honest proclamation of Iran's genocidal intent. Salami said:
"Today, more than ever, there is fertile ground -- with the grace of God -- for the annihilation, the wiping out, and the collapse of the Zionist regime. In Lebanon alone, more than100,000 missiles are ready to be launched. If there is a will, if it serves [our] interests, and if the Zionist regime repeats its past mistakes due to its miscalculations, these missiles will pierce through space, and will strike at the heart of the Zionist regime. They will prepare the ground for its great collapse in the new era".
Salami's words are backed by concrete actions. Iran, on the way to having nuclear bombs, has provided support to terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad and the Houthis, all of which have vowed to annihilate Israel. Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, boasts an arsenal of an estimated 150,000 missiles, many precision-guided, aimed at Israel's population. Meanwhile, Hamas has demonstrated its willingness to commit a genocide, launching more than 12,000 indiscriminate rocket attacks just since October at civilian targets in Israel, a country the size of New Jersey.
The October 7, 2023 invasion of Israel by launched by Hamas serves as a serious reminder of the constant threat faced by the Israeli people. The raw savagery and brazenness of Hamas's atrocities that day underscores the urgency of the situation. Israel is fighting for its very survival against countries and terrorists who seek its total demolition.
Iran's belligerency towards Israel is not limited to "just" rhetoric and proxy warfare. Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has outlined his vision for Israel's demise in his book, Palestine, a 416-page "guide to destroying Israel," and railing against "The Great Satan," the United States. This is not a hypothetical scenario; it is a meticulously planned campaign of annihilation.
Despite these openly existential threats, Israel finds itself increasingly isolated on the international stage. The Biden administration's approach to Hamas's war on Israel, which started out supportive of the Jewish state, has since shown that support dwindling after a few Muslims, at the urging of US Rep. Rashida Tlaib, refused to vote for him in the primary race.
Onlookers can only assume that if the Biden administration is threatening its democratic ally, Israel, instead of the Hamas terrorists and their backers -- Qatar and Iran -- it is clearly better to be an enemy of the United States, and, above all, for your security, never to take America's word that it will protect you. While the Biden administration is threatening to withhold life-saving arms from Israel, the Biden administration just rewarded both of its chief attackers, Iran and Qatar.
The US just handed Iran – which attacked US troops in the region more than 150 times since October -- yet another $10 billion in sanctions waivers.
The Biden administration just actually invited Hamas's main funder, Qatar, to operate a planned pier in Gaza to bring in humanitarian aid. All of it will certainly end up with Hamas, not Gazan civilians -- and, one can imagine what else Qatar will allow in, from heavy weapons to more terrorists.
Meanwhile, Israel is being ordered to begin a ceasefire immediately – never mind that there was already a ceasefire in place on October 6, 2023. Any ceasefire, of course, will simply allow Hamas to rearm, regroup and claim victory for not having been eradicated. Israel will be expected to abide by the ceasefire, Hamas not. The most recent ceasefire proposal was just scuttled again by Hamas, which could not come up with 40 Israeli hostages -- women and children -- that Hamas holds, to exchange for 900 Palestinian terrorists imprisoned in Israel. Presumably those hostages are dead.
To abandon Israel now would not just be a betrayal of the values of freedom and democracy that the United States claims to hold dear, it would be a signal for all the enemies of the West now to move in.
It is urgent that the Biden administration and all democracies stand firmly with Israel against terrorism. This means providing unwavering political, diplomatic, and military support to ensure Israel's ability to defend itself against this aggression, often backed by well-funded organizations such as Code Pink.
These predators not only pose a threat to Israel, but to the United States, its allies, and the security of democracies worldwide.
Undermining Israel will only accelerate the triumph of terrorism over civilization, extremism over moderation, and tyranny and over democracy.
A Hamas "victory," incentivizing aggression, cannot be rewarded; it must be stopped.
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a business strategist and advisor, Harvard-educated scholar, political scientist, board member of Harvard International Review, and president of the International American Council on the Middle East. He has authored several books on Islam and US Foreign Policy. He can be reached at Dr.Rafizadeh@Post.Harvard.Edu
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