Iran is attacking Israel as part of a broader and long-standing conflict rooted in ideological hostility that intensified after the 1979 Iranian Islamic Revolution. The immediate spark for the current open conflict in 2025 was Israel's surprise air and ground strikes on key Iranian military and nuclear facilities starting June 13, 2025, following the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) declaring Iran non-compliant with its nuclear obligations. Israel considers Iran’s nuclear program an existential threat and fears Iran could develop nuclear weapons that would undermine Israel's security and regional dominance. The conflict has escalated after decades of proxy wars and indirect confrontations, notably including Israeli assassinations of Iranian military and nuclear scientists, and Iranian missile and drone strikes against Israeli cities and military targets in retaliation. Iran views Israel as an illegitimate state and a threat to the Palestinian people, whom Iran supports as part of its regional policy. The 2025 war, known as the Iran–Israel war or the Twelve-Day War, involved intense missile and drone attacks from Iran and its allies on Israel, with the US supporting Israel militarily. In summary, Iran is attacking Israel in retaliation and defense amidst ongoing hostilities linked to Iran's nuclear program ambitions, Israel's military preemptive strikes to neutralize those threats, and deeper ideological and geopolitical enmity dating back decades.