The war with Iran has intensified debate in the United States over Israel’s role in American foreign policy and the future of the US–Israel relationship. While the conflict is unlikely to fundamentally transform Israel’s standing in the United States, it appears poised to accelerate trends already underway: growing partisan polarization, declining support for Israel among Democrats and younger Americans, and the emergence of dissenting voices within the Republican coalition. These dynamics risk shifting the US–Israel relationship...
In recent years, the integration of artificial intelligence into defense systems has evolved from a decision-support tool into a strategic infrastructure shaping the conduct of war. Within this trend, the Pentagon’s adoption of the AI-First doctrine marks a significant conceptual shift from the limited integration of artificial intelligence systems to a systemic approach in which AI becomes a foundational component in the chain of command, in intelligence collection and analysis, and in the planning of multi-theater operations. This...
President Trump’s statements in recent days reflect an effort to convey two parallel messages: presenting the campaign against Iran as an advancing success while, at the same time, avoiding a clear definition of its end conditions. This situation illustrates the growing tension within the administration between those pushing to continue the campaign to maximize its military achievements and economic, political, and strategic constraints pushing to shorten it. From Israel’s perspective, this is an especially sensitive stage: The...
The US–Israeli military campaign against Iran presents President Trump with the challenge of achieving a rapid, easily marketable success without becoming mired in a prolonged war. The president has adopted an especially hawkish public stance and has called on the Iranian public to “seize the moment”; yet ambiguity remains regarding whether there is an organized plan for regime change and for the “day after” the war. Within the Trump administration, the tension is likely to sharpen between maintaining maximal military pressure—aimed...
This interactive map provides a strategic situational overview of the Middle East theater during the joint Israeli-American operation against Iran. It features Israeli and U.S. strikes across the region, Iranian strikes within Arab nations, U.S. force deployments, and Iranian military facilities and bases. Additionally, users can enable an optional layer displaying strikes from Operation Rising Lion for comparative analysis. The map is updated continuously with the highest possible precision, based on open-source intelligence (OSINT)...
In recent months, the Trump administration has intensified its campaign against proponents of political Islam. This effort has been reflected in state-level proclamations by the governors of Texas and Florida, designating the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) as “foreign terrorist organizations,” as well as in a presidential order stating that branches of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon should be considered “terrorist organizations.” These moves have reignited discussion in...
This interactive map highlights the deployment of U.S. military assets and other relevant actors in the region. The current U.S. posture signals deterrence and readiness for offensive military operations, while reflecting a strong preference to avoid a protracted conflict. Combined with intensified ISR activity and diplomatic signaling, this configuration supports coercive diplomacy but also increases the risk of escalation through miscalculation in an already volatile theater. The map is updated regularly and as accurately as...
US military aid to Israel has, for decades, constituted a central pillar of the strategic relationship between the two countries and a foundational component of Israel’s national security concept. Beyond its financial scope, this aid serves as an institutional, political, and symbolic anchor of the alliance between Jerusalem and Washington, embodying the United States’ commitment to preserving Israel’s qualitative military edge in a challenging regional environment. The current multiyear agreement (2019–2028), signed in 2016, sets...
Tensions between Iran and the United States, which escalated following an American military buildup several days after the outbreak of protests across Iran, are currently in a temporary lull. This pause comes amid plans to hold a meeting between the two countries on February 6 in Oman (after a last-minute crisis that put the talks at risk was likely resolved). President Trump is aware of the risk to the credibility of US deterrence should no meaningful achievement vis-à-vis Iran be attained, given the expectations created by the...
The Board of Peace was initially conceived as a focused initiative intended to support the stabilization and reconstruction process in the Gaza Strip, as part of President Trump’s 20-Point Plan, which was anchored in the UN Security Council Resolution 2803. However, a review of its charter indicates a substantial deviation from its original purpose: the board is now defined as a global conflict-resolution mechanism outside the UN framework, with no reference to Gaza and no limitation to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. This gap...
This article examines the document that Hamas published in December 2025 summarizing the war and, in particular, the intensifying battle of narratives between Hamas and Israel. Hamas addresses three target audiences: the Palestinian and Arab public, Israel, and the international community. The article focuses especially on Hamas’s appeal to Western audiences, primarily in English, and its use of Western concepts, such as referring to Hamas terrorists as “freedom fighters.” Hamas also employs gaslighting tactics and makes...
Three weeks after the outbreak of a wave of unrest across Iran—which has claimed thousands of lives and led to the arrest of thousands more—the US administration faces a series of operational decisions in light of threats issued by President Trump toward the regime in Tehran. The president’s threats began with a public statement that the United States would come “to rescue” the protesters if the regime continued to employ lethal violence against them. This escalated with an additional tweet on January 13 in which he wrote that “help...
